Tag: Pixar

MONSTERS, INC. Coming Back in 2012

“Kitty!”

That was the last word of PIXAR’s first MONSTERS, INC. as Sully (voiced by John Goodman) peaked back into Boo’s room to see if she remembered him.  She did, and so do we, and, now, nine years after the film’s release, PIXAR is remembering them, as well.  As reported on The Hollywood Reporter, PIXAR and Disney announced MONSTERS, INC. 2 (tentative title) will be released to theaters on November 16th, 2012.  Both Goodman and Billy Crystal are expected to return.

This will make MONSTERS, INC. the third film from PIXAR to be sequelized with TOY STORY 3 hitting theaters this coming Summer and CARS 2 coming Summer, 2011.  PIXAR is building their release schedules up, as well, getting away from the one-film-a -year structure they’ve been on for some time.  Also set to be released in 2012 is BRAVE.

While the idea of pumping out sequels to past treasures from PIXAR seems like a quick way to make some easy cash, I have learned my lesson never to count the animated studio out.  I remember not being particularly excited for UP, and that ended up being one of the best films PIXAR had to date.  TOY STORY 2 is also a fair indicator they know exactly what they’re doing when it comes to revisiting already established characters.

What do you think?  Is MONSTERS, INC. a good idea?  What other, PIXAR films would you like to see be turned into a franchise?  Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Calling All College Students For TOY STORY 3

Disney/Pixar is sending out the word to all college students. You are invited to a screening of the SPECIAL CLIFFHANGER EDITION of Disney/Pixar’s TOY STORY 3! Select your school from the list on the special FACEBOOK page and then click “I’m In!” for the chance to see the first 65 minutes of the gang’s newest adventure.

The 4 Missouri Universities that are eligible for the TOY STORY 3 Cliffhanger Screening: 

Webster University, Washington University, Saint Louis University, and University of Missouri St. Louis.

  • Where: Landmark Tivoli.
  • When: Wednesday, April 28 from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm

You MUST bring your valid college ID for admission, seating is first come, first serve.

If you dont live in MO, click here for a complete list of all the colleges nationwide that are eligible for the special preview. And make sure to check out the full 3D experience of TOY STORY 3 when it hits theaters nationwide June 18, 2010. Remember, the toys are depending on you.

For all thing TOY STORY 3, check out the director’s, Lee Unkrich, Twitter page.

The Toys Are Bursting Out of This TOY STORY 3 Poster

The gangs all here.  Well, Totoro’s not here.  And Pickaxe Pete seems to not be along for the ride this time around.  And there seems to be something a bit different with Slinky Dog.  But, other than that, it seems the whole gang is front and present for this TOY STORY 3 poster.

Brought to us today by Yahoo! Movies, the poster is fine.  It’s colorful enough so as to draw the eye in those brightly lit theater lobbies.  And, for some reason, Jessie sticking her leg out to show us Andy’s name still promptly written on the bottom of her boot brings a heart-filled grin to my face.  And, hey, the ascot is there for anyone who can’t get enough of that.  The poster could have been a black print with the ascot hanging in the middle, and I would have been sold.

TOY STORY 3 hits theaters in 3-D and IMAX on June 18th.

New TOY STORY 3 Trailer Offers Adventure, Toys and more Toys

There was hardly ever any doubt how excited most of us were to have Buzz, Woody, and the rest of the gang back for a TOY STORY 3, especially when you consider PIXAR holding out for the returns of Tim Allen and Tom Hanks.   Luckily for everyone, the new trailer released today through MySpace Movie Trailers seems just like old times with the TOY STORY crew.   The new adventure seems thrilling and funny and it offers the next, logical step in the story of one boy’s connection with his childhood toys.

The new trailer also offers up our first looks at some new characters, including the infamous Ken, voiced by Michael Keaton.   Incredible animation aside, this looks to be one of the more memorable characters of the series even if he doesn’t end up being the film’s eventual villain.

Don’t take my word for any of this, though.   Check out the new trailer for yourself.   You can also head over to MySpace to see the trailer in all of its Hi Def glory.

It’s also great to see Totoro from Miyazaki’s MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO make a cameo appearance.   In case you missed it, here’s the screen shot:

He’s the bunny-looking character there in the top right.   A very nice inclusion by PIXAR in my humble opinion.

TOY STORY 3 hits theaters on June 18th.

UP For Your Consideration

Upconsider

I loved Pixar’s UP so much. It makes my heart warm to see that this film is campaigning for a spot in the ten Best Picture nominees for this year’s Academy Awards. Variety has the spread below in their daily edition, which has been scanned by the kind folks over at Awards Daily. I personally love the use of these two photos, the first being Carl running up the hill to Ellie, leading to the second where the two of them are pointing out cloud forms. Ah this film just warms my heart. Go ahead, call me a sap. Do it. The film is campaigning for the ambitious Best Picture category and of course, Best Animated Feature. Check out the full quality version over at Awards Daily!

PixarAward

Do you guys think UP will get nominated for Best Picture?

Three More TOY STORY 3 Character Posters: UPDATED WITH A FOURTH

toy story poster buzz

UPDATE: AIN’T IT COOL NEWS HAS POSTED A FOURTH POSTER FEATURING SLINKY DOG. NO WORD YET ON WHO WILL BE VOICING THE ROLE, SINCE JIM VARNEY PASSED AWAY IN 2000.

Well, I thought it would be a slow roll-out on the character posters for TOY STORY 3.  We brought you the ones for Rex and Jessie already, and, today, we have three more to round out the set.  They come to us today courtesy of three, different sites, Yahoo! Movies for the Buzz poster you see above, Moviefone for Woody, and SlashFilm for Hamm.

You can scope those last two right here:

toy story poster woody

toy story poster hamm

toy story 3 poster slinky

TOY STORY 3 is set for release on June 18th, 2010.

TOY STORY 3 Character Poster for Jessie

toy story 3 poster jessie

Expect a whole boat-load of these to hit the net in the next couple of weeks.  Yesterday, we brought you the new character poster for Rex, today, courtesy of our friends over at Coming Soon.net, we have this character poster for Jessie.  While Joan Cusack isn’t exactly a favorite of mine, in fact, she can sometimes be downright annoying, the Jessie character arc was one of the more poignant moments of TOY STORY 2.  Here’s hoping she can bring on the water works just as much for the third film.

TOY STORY 3 is set for release in 3D on June 18th, 2010.

TOY STORY 3 Trailer

toy story 3 rex poster

I brought my younger son and his friend this Friday evening to see TOY STORY 1 & 2 in 3-D. I was overcome by a huge wave of  wistful nostalgia at seeing  Pixar’s two extraordinary films once again in the theatre as I did with my older son in 1995 and 1999 respectively.  As I watched  the opening credits of  TOY STORY, I couldn’t help but reminisce about past events when we first were introduced to the boy, Andy, whose  bedroom was filled with his toys that came to life every stolen moment they got and who had an  exciting, event-filled  world of their own.  A second  visit back to  Andy’s room in TOY STORY 2,  found our toys/friends venturing out  on a perilous “recon mission”, while introducing us to some new, endearing characters.  Then, and even now, I  often compared Andy to my own son, Tom, who would spend hours in his room  with his toys, board games, and  various action figures….complete with Woody and Buzz Lightyear figures and accompanying  TOY STORY bedding. Being around the same ages, in a way, it was easy to look upon Andy  as a  “son.” Prior to the TOY STORY double feature, ever so neat in 3-D, was this new  trailer for TOY STORY 3 and it came packed with an unexpected  emotional punch right  to the heart for me. Once again, Andy and Tom’s lives are running parallel – both boys have left childhood behind, grown to be young men, and  headed  off to college. In TOY STORY 3 Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Hamm, Rex, Mr. Potato Head and the rest are left behind after Andy  leaves and  they find their new home is  a daycare center,  leaving the toys to face the threat of being separated.  I think Woody puts it best when he said, “we all knew this day was comin’.” And so it has.

From what I saw in this newest trailer, Pixar  has  begun  the countdown  to send  us blasting off  for a third time  “to Infinity and Beyond” on June 18, 2010.

Much thanks to Sasha over at Awards Daily for the heads up on the new trailer

TOY STORY 3 Character Poster for Rex

toy story 3 rex poster

Just last week, a few of us were discussing how great Wallace Shawn is as an actor.   Even when he’s providing a voice for characters like TOY STORY’s Rex, he brings his A-game.   So, it is awesome to notice how much the marketing behind TOY STORY 3 is behind Rex the Green Dinosaur.

Today, we bring you the first of, probably, many character posters for TOY STORY 3.   This comes to us today courtesy of the Trailer Park on Myspace, and it features none other than Rex front and center.   They also announced on the site that the full trailer for the new film will be unveiled on Monday, October 12th, at 9AM PT/12PM ET, so be sure to check back on Monday.

TOY STORY 3 hits theaters on June 18th.

Major Announcement: Disney Acquiring Marvel Entertainment

walt disney

In a blockbuster announcement this morning, the Walt Disney company is in the process of acquiring Marvel Entertainment for the cool price of $4 billion.   Already, the Internet is abuzz with potential cross-overs and the possibilities of a PIXAR comic book movie.

Here is the official press release:

Building on its strategy of delivering quality branded content to people around the world, The Walt Disney Company has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc. in a stock and cash transaction, the companies announced today.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney on August 28, 2009, Marvel shareholders would receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own. At closing, the amount of cash and stock will be adjusted if necessary so that the total value of the Disney stock issued as merger consideration based on its trading value at that time is not less than 40% of the total merger consideration.

Based on the closing price of Disney stock on Friday, August 28, the transaction value is $50 per Marvel share or approximately $4 billion.

“This transaction combines Marvel’s strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor with Disney’s creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximizes the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories,” said Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “Ike Perlmutter and his team have done an impressive job of nurturing these properties and have created significant value. We are pleased to bring this talent and these great assets to Disney.”

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation,” Iger said.

“Disney is the perfect home for Marvel’s fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses,” said Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s Chief Executive Officer. “This is an unparalleled opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around the world.”

Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of Marvel including its more than 5,000 Marvel characters. Mr. Perlmutter will oversee the Marvel properties, and will work directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build and further integrate Marvel’s properties.

The Boards of Directors of Disney and Marvel have each approved the transaction, which is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, certain non-United States merger control regulations, effectiveness of a registration statement with respect to Disney shares issued in the transaction and other customary closing conditions. The agreement will require the approval of Marvel shareholders. Marvel was advised on the transaction by BofA Merrill Lynch.

This news also brings up several questions about the Marvel films already in production or on the horizon.   According to Coming Soon, all present deals will stay in place with their current studios.   Evidently, John Lasseter met with Marvel last week, and to say he is gleeful of a Marvel/PIXAR movie is the understatement of the year.   There are definitely ideas brewing in everyone’s heads involved.