The future was uncertain for the Pixar hero playthings in Toy Story 3, released in 2010. That film centered on the toys’ owner Andy getting ready to leave for college, and the goodbye between the young man and his former BFF Woody tugged at the heartstrings. Since then, Pixar head John Lasseter announced that the 3D saga would continue in Toy Story 4 — and at the current D23 expo, Lasseter made a big announcement about the forthcoming film.
“It’s a love story with Woody and — and this is news — Bo Peep,” said Lasseter (via Coming Soon). “At Pixar and at Disney, we only make sequels if we come up with a story that’s as good or better than the original. That’s our rule. We don’t do things just to print money.”
In the original 1995 Toy Story, Bo Peep, voiced by Ghostbusters’ Annie Potts, was introduced as Woody’s love interest. The porcelain shepherdess (and her three sheep) is technically one of sister Molly’s toys. She did not appear in the third installment of the animated series, but it was revealed in flashback footage that she was probably sold in a yard sale — which, of course, made Woody rather sad.
Lasseter continued (via CinemaBlend): “We love these characters so much; they are like family to us. We don’t want to do anything with them unless it lives up to or surpasses what’s gone before. Toy Story 3 ended Woody and Buzz’s story with Andy so perfectly that for a long time, we never even talked about doing another Toy Story movie. But when Andrew, Pete, Lee and I came up with this new idea, I just could not stop thinking about it. It was so exciting to me, I knew we had to make this movie — and I wanted to direct it myself.”
Screenwriters (and sometimes actors) Rashida Jones and Will McCormack are writing the script for Toy Story 4, which has a new poster (via Coming Soon), based on a concept by Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, and Lee Unkrich. And Lasseter will be directing. We assume that Woody’s Tom Hanks will make a comeback, along with other regulars like Tim Allen (Buzz Lightyear). Look for Toy Story 4 in theaters on June 16, 2017.