Pixar's 'The Incredibles 2,' 'Cars 3' get release dates

Viewers waiting to see more “supers” now know when they’ll get a sequel to the 2004 Pixar film “The Incredibles.”

It was recently announced that “The Incredibles 2” will arrive in theaters in June 2019, while a third film in the Pixar “Cars” series will be released in June 2017. A fourth film in the “Toy Story” series will come to theaters in June 2018. Before descending into sequel-land, the studio plans another new story in next year's "The Good Dinosaur."

Pixar has become one of the most financially successful and critically acclaimed animation companies. Their film “Inside Out” became one of the biggest draws of this past summer and received raves from critics. Two of the studio’s films, “Up” and “Toy Story 3,” have received Best Picture nominations at the Oscars.

The studio has lately been planning more sequels than it did at the beginning of its run. For some time, the only sequel released by Pixar was 1999’s “Toy Story 2.” It wasn’t until 2010 when it released a third installment in the “Toy Story” series and quickly followed it up with “Cars 2.” Since then, it has also released a sequel to its “Monsters, Inc.” film titled “Monsters University.”

When moviegoers hear the word “sequel,” they may think of declining quality (there’s a reason films like “The Godfather: Part II” are viewed as exceptions). However, so far, Pixar has seemed to mostly escape that. The movie “Toy Story 3” was just as well-received as the first two films in addition to receiving that Best Picture nomination. “Monsters University” had a more mixed reception but was not a failure by any means. 

It’s interesting that Pixar is planning a third “Cars” film as the 2011 film “Cars 2” could be said to be the rare creative stumble by the studio. In comparison to the often incredibly positive critical reception for their films, “Cars 2” was not at all well-received. However, it did perform well at the box office, and 'Cars' merchandise is estimated to have brought in over $10 billion.

Producing creatively satisfying sequels like those in the “Toy Story” series are yet another way Pixar has defied expectations over the last decades. Industry observers called their ideas for films like “Up” and “WALL-E” unlikely or flawed – would children, a large part of, but by no means all, of Pixar’s audience, watch a movie about an elderly man or enjoy a long stretch of nearly-wordless film? So far, Pixar has largely overcome these hurdles, with “Up” and “WALL-E” not only receiving critical acclaim but becoming box office successes, though recent films like “University” and “Brave” received more mixed reviews.