WIN OR LOSE Trailer (2025) Pixar

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WIN OR LOSE Trailer (2025) Pixar
© 2025 - Pixar
One story, told from eight sides. Watch the Win or Lose trailer for the upcoming Pixar original series. Win or Lose is coming to Disney+ on February 19, 2025.

Pixar Animation Studios’ original series Win or Lose follows the intertwined stories of eight different characters as they each prepare for their big championship softball game. The series reveals what it actually feels like to be in the shoes of each character—the insecure kids, their helicopter parents, even a lovesick umpire—with incredibly funny, very emotional and uniquely animated perspectives.
"No matter what happens, you are all winners!" Get ready to play ball! ⚾ Pixar has debuted the full official trailer for their new streaming series called Win or Lose, which has been in development for years. This original animation creation made by Pixar Animation Studios is finally streaming on Disney+ starting this February - delayed from its original December date. The new series follows the intertwined stories of eight different characters as they each prepare for their big championship softball game. Their team is known as the Pickles. 🥒 The fascinating Inside Out-inspired series reveals what it actually feels like to be in the shoes of each of the unique characters—the insecure kids, their helicopter parents, even a lovesick umpire—with incredibly funny, very emotional and uniquely animated perspectives. Will Forte voices their coach. The cast also includes Izaac Wang (from Didi!), Ian Chen, Jo Firestone, Milan, & Josh Thomson. It's still infuriating that they removed a trans storyline from the series - it really should be in here. But the rest of it looks fantastic anyway! All these personal stories seem so honest and I'm excited to see every episode.

Here's the main official trailer (+ posters) for Pixar's anthology series Win or Lose, direct from YouTube:

Win or Lose Series Poster

Win or Lose Series Poster

You can watch the initial teaser trailer for Pixar's Win or Lose series right here to view the first look again.

Win or Lose follows a co-ed middle school softball team called the Pickles in the week leading up to their big championship game. Each 20-minute episode takes the same events from one different member of the Pickles and their perspective as the game approaches, such as players, their parents, and the umpire, with two stories being showcased in particular. Win or Lose is a new series created & made by Pixar Animation Studios for Disney+. The series is created & written & showrun by filmmakers Carrie Hobson (story artist on Toy Story 4) and Michael Yates (The Legend of the Flying Tomato short film). Produced by David Lally (of Pixar's SparkShots series). With music composed by Ramin Djawadi. Executive produced by Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, Lindsey Collins, Carrie Hobson, Michael Yates, & David Lally. Disney will debut Pixar's Win or Lose series streaming on Disney+ starting February 19th, 2025 this winter. Who's ready for this?
The trailer for Pixar Animation Studios’ first-ever original series, “Win or Lose,” has been released, with the full series streaming on Disney+ on February 19. The animated show features the intertwined stories of eight characters as they prepare for their big championship softball game. Those characters have undergone at least some adjustments at the behest of Disney, which requested the removal of a storyline about a trans character and adjusted lines of dialogue to remove any mention of gender identity.

“When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline,” a spokesperson said in a statement to IndieWire at the time.

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Each episode of “Win or Lose” focuses on the perspective of a different character, including the kids, their parents, and the game’s umpire, and the trailer reveals how dreams and anxieties are rendered in a colorful and sometimes mixed-media animation style. The fantasy vignettes and shifts of perspective are a device likely aimed both at kids who love a good visual gag and at anyone who wants sports stories to be about more than what’s on the field; the sweat monsters and orange soda oracles off the field are included.

“I played softball growing up,” said Carrie Hobson in a statement. Hobson wrote, directed, and executive produced the series with Michael Yates. “Inspired by that experience, we felt fast-pitch softball was the perfect backdrop for the show. There are so many facets to playing sports that I love — it can bring out the best and worst of a person; the calmest person can lose their temper. And when it comes to winning and losing — the consequences are nothing, and yet, they’re everything. We really felt like it was the best arena for the themes we loved.”

In addition to the potential of sports to load thematic bases, “Win or Lose” features some musical experimentation with a score by Ramin Djawadi, probably best known for the much grittier fantasy of “Game of Thrones” and “House of the Dragon,” and songs by Djawadi and CAMPFIRE.

“Win or Lose” features the voices of Will Forte, Rosie Foss, Josh Thomson, Milan Elizabeth Ray, Rosa Salazar, Dorien Watson, Izaac Wang, Chanel Stewart, Lil Re​l Howery, Melissa Villaseñor, Jo Firestone, Flula Borg, Kyleigh Curran, ​Jaylin Fletcher, Erin Keif, Tom Law, Beck Nolan, Orion Tran, and Rhea Seehorn.

Watch the trailer below.

Read More:
Animation
Disney+
Pixar
TV
Win Or Lose
Stepping up to the streaming plate next month is Win or Lose, Pixar Animation Studios’ first-ever original series. A trailer for the new series as well as character key art and stills were unveiled today.

Launching on Disney+ February 19, Win or Lose features the intertwined stories of eight different characters as they each prepare for their big championship softball game — the insecure kids, their helicopter parents, even a lovesick umpire

Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]

“I played softball growing up,” said Carrie Hobson, who wrote, directed and executive produced the series with Michael Yates. “Inspired by that experience, we felt fast-pitch softball was the perfect backdrop for the show. There are so many facets to playing sports that I love — it can bring out the best and worst of a person, the calmest person can lose their temper. And when it comes to winning and losing — the consequences are nothing, and yet, they’re everything. We really felt like it was the best arena for the themes we loved.”

Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]
Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]
Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]
According to Yates, the idea of spotlighting different perspectives was born of everyday life at Pixar. “Carrie and I were officemates on Toy Story 4,” he said. “We were both story artists on the film, and we would talk about a lot of things going on in the film, as well as things going on in the world — current events, news. We would always have different reactions or different interpretations of the same meeting. One of us would say, ‘That went great!’ and the other would say, ‘No! It was terrible, what are you talking about?’ We realized that our own experiences that we bring to the table change our perception of an event. We wanted to tell a story that illustrated all of that.”

Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]
Win or Lose [Pixar/Disney+]
Win or Lose features the voices of Will Forte, Rosie Foss, Josh Thomson, Milan Elizabeth Ray, Rosa Salazar, Dorien Watson, Izaac Wang, Chanel Stewart, Lil Re​l Howery, Melissa Villaseñor, Jo Firestone, Flula Borg, Kyleigh Curran, ​Jaylin Fletcher, Erin Keif, Tom Law, Beck Nolan, Orion Tran and Rhea Seehorn. The series is produced by David Lally, with music by composer Ramin Djawadi and original songs by CAMPFIRE and Djawadi.

Add Win or Lose to your watch list here on Disney+.

TagsBeck NolanCAMPFIRECarrie HobsonChanel StewartDisneyDorien WatsonErin KeifFlula BorgIzaac Wang​Jaylin FletcherJo FirestoneJosh ThomsonKyleigh CurranLil Rel HoweryMelissa VillasenorMichael YatesMilan Elizabeth RayOrion TranPixarPixar Animation StudiosRamin DjawadiRhea SeehornRosa SalazarRosie FossTom LawWill ForteWin or Lose
Pixar Animation Studios is venturing into new territory with Win or Lose, the studio’s first original TV series. The show tells the intertwined stories of eight characters as they gear up for a championship softball game. From anxious players and helicopter parents to a lovesick umpire, the series delivers a heartfelt and humorous exploration of the moments that shape us, both on and off the field.

Directed, written and executively produced by Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates, Win or Lose highlights the idea that every perspective tells a different story. Each episode focuses on a single character’s viewpoint, offering a fresh lens on the shared experience. To reflect the emotional depth and humor of its narrative, the series employs a mixed-media animation style, bringing the characters’ dreams, fears and imaginations vividly to life through dynamic fantasy sequences.

This groundbreaking series marks a significant milestone for Pixar, expanding beyond its acclaimed feature films into episodic storytelling. With its distinctive format, heartfelt themes and captivating visuals, Win or Lose promises to connect with audiences of all ages.

Win or Lose will begin streaming on Disney+ on February 19. Watch the trailer above.
Win or Lose

Genre
Comedy drama
Sports
Created by
Carrie Hobson
Michael Yates
Written by
Carrie Hobson
Michael Yates
Directed by
Carrie Hobson
Michael Yates
Voices of
Will Forte
Izaac Wang
Ian Chen
Jo Firestone
Milan Ray
Josh Thomson
Erin Keif
Rosie Foss
Rosa Salazar
Chanel Stewart
Dorien Watson
Lil Rel Howery
Melissa Villaseñor
Flula Borg
Kyliegh Curran
Rhea Seehorn
Composer Ramin Djawadi
Country of origin United States
Original language English
Production
Executive producers
Carrie Hobson
Michael Yates
David Lally
Pete Docter
Andrew Stanton
Lindsey Collins
Animators
Brendan Beesley
Brandon Kern
Tom Zach
Production company Pixar Animation Studios
Original release
Network Disney+
Win or Lose is an upcoming American animated television series produced by Pixar Animation Studios for the streaming service Disney+. It was created, written, and directed by Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates, who also served as executive producers with David Lally, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, and Lindsey Collins. The series revolves around a co-ed softball team at middle school named the Pickles in the week leading up to their big championship game, with each episode showing the perspective of each member in the same events, each reflected in a unique visual style.

The series' cast includes Will Forte, Ian Chen, Izaac Wang, Jo Firestone, Milan Ray, Josh Thomson, Erin Keif, Rosie Foss, and Chanel Stewart. Pixar was developing the long-form original series following the creation of Disney+. It was officially announced in December 2020, during Disney's Investor Day, with Hobson and Yates on board who conceived the idea. Win or Lose draws inspiration from the conversations between Hobson and Yates, who would have very different reactions to the exact same events upon working on Toy Story 4 (2019). The animation style appears to shift, distinguishing itself further from usual fare in each episode, with Brendan Beesley, Brandon Kern, and Tom Zach as the heads of animation. Docter described the series as "a comedy about love, rivalry, and the challenges we all face in our struggles to win at life". Its musical score was composed by Ramin Djawadi. Win or Lose is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ on February 19, 2025, and will consist of eight episodes.[1]

Synopsis
Win or Lose follows a co-ed middle school softball team called the Pickles in the week leading up to their big championship game. Each 20-minute episode takes the same events from one different member of the Pickles and their perspective as the game approaches, such as players, their parents, and the umpire, with two stories being showcased in particular.[2]

Voice cast and characters
Will Forte as Coach Dan, the coach of the softball team known as the Pickles.[3]
Izaac Wang as Yuwen[4]
Ian Chen[4]
Jo Firestone as Sweaty[4]
Milan Ray as Rochelle, the catcher who is having a bad day when everything goes wrong. Despite this, she is an excellent student who takes the initiative in everything in her life. The character is described as a "teenage CEO".[5]
Josh Thomson as Frank[4]
Erin Keif as Lena[4]
Rosie Foss[4]
Rosa Salazar as Vanessa, Rochelle's single mother.[5]
Chanel Stewart as Kai[6]
Dorien Watson[7]
Lil Rel Howery[7]
Melissa Villaseñor[7]
Flula Borg[7]
Kyliegh Curran[7]
Jaylin Fletcher[7]
Tom Law[7]
Beck Nolan[7]
Orion Tran[7]
Rhea Seehorn[7]
Other characters set to appear included a selfish pitcher who cares about himself until his episode reveals that he is in love with a girl.[8]

Episodes
All episodes are directed and written by Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates.[2]

No. Title Original release date
1 "Vanessa: The Cool Mom"[5] February 19, 2025[1]
Production
Development
In December 2020, during Disney's Investor Day meeting, Pixar announced an original series titled Win or Lose for its parent company Disney's streaming service, Disney+. Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates were announced to be creating, writing, and directing from an idea they conceived, while David Lally was announced to be producing the project. "It's not so much about softball as it is a comedy about love, rivalry, and the challenges we all face in our struggles to win at life," Pixar's Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter stated. The series would consist of 20-minute episodes.[2][9] When working on Toy Story 4 (2019), Hobson and Yates realized that they had different interpretations of how their creative meetings went, so they used these differing interpretations to develop the idea of an animated series revolving around one event but with each character having their own conflicts surrounding the event.[10] Hobson explained that Win or Lose has all the humor and heart of a Pixar feature film, but with a different type of storytelling. She also stated: "It's less of a Rashomon and more... You think you know a character, and then you pull back the curtain and reveal they have their own thing going on".[11] Hobson and Yates also executive-produced the series alongside Lally, Docter, Andrew Stanton, and Lindsey Collins.[12][13]

Win or Lose is Pixar's first long-form animated series, as well as the first not to be based upon an existing property, as most of Pixar's television projects are based upon an existing property and short-form.[2] Pixar began considering developing a TV series following the creation of Disney+.[13] Yates and Hobson said one of the reasons a TV show format was selected for the series was the idea of experimenting with the format and longer storytelling, particularly regarding character perspectives, as well as a love for television.[14] Another reason was how television would allow Pixar to do things a feature film format would not allow to.[14] Hobson and Yates noted they both had to learn how to work on an episodic format.[14] In July 2023, Lally confirmed on X that post-production for the series was completed.[15]

Writing
According to Hobson and Yates, a major theme on the series is how things are not as they seem, and seeing things from different perspectives, particularly how people in one place can suffer different experiences.[14] Each episode centers on a different character; characters are first introduced in a different episode, after which their episode further explores the said character after the perception first given in their debut.[14] Hobson said the characters were inspired by her and Yates, as well as by people they have met through their lives and their own experiences.[14]

Controversy
In December 2024, The Hollywood Reporter (THR) announced that a storyline regarding a transgender character in the series had been cut. THR noted "A source close to Win or Lose said the studio made the decision to alter course several months ago." According to a spokesperson for Disney, "When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline." While the character remains in the series, lines of dialogue that referenced gender identity were cut.[16] Chanel Stewart, the openly transgender actress who plays the character in question, criticized this decision, saying she was told that while she would still be a part of the show, the character she was playing would now be straight and cisgender.[6]

Casting
At the September 2022 D23 Expo, it was announced that Will Forte would voice the lead character Coach Dan, ahead of a first look image released on the same day.[3] Forte's voice performance as Coach was inspired by Robin Williams as the Genie from Disney's Aladdin (1992). Yates said, "Will was constantly improving. It was an overflow of great stuff. The hardest part was having a five-minute scene with constant belly laughs and having to get it to three minutes!"[11] In June 2023, at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Milan Ray and Rosa Salazar joined the voice cast.[5] At the August 2024 D23 fan event, Ian Chen, Izaac Wang, Jo Firestone, Josh Thomson, Erin Keif, and Rosie Foss were announced as part of the voice cast.[4]

Animation
Mark C. Harris and Gini Cruz Santos served as the animation supervisors on the series, while Kevin Andrus, Lucas Fraga Pacheco, and Stefan Schumacher served as directing animators on the series.[17] Animation was provided by the artist crew that worked on feature films.[18] Win or Lose used more animators than a feature film.[14] The series made heavy use of visual metaphors, with some characters featuring multiple metaphors.[14] In each episode, the animation style appears to shift, further distinguishing itself from Pixar's usual fare. For example, Rochelle's story appears to mimic a cardboard diorama, and the actual softball footage mimics that of a traditional sports anime.[10] This was made in order to visualize each character's perspective.[13] The production team worked closely with the animators in order to define how each character would move in a way that showcases their characterization.[13] The series also made use of 2D animation, which the producers said was determined regarding what the story mandated.[13]

Music
In June 2023, Ramin Djawadi was revealed to be composing for the series. He began recording the score two months later.[5][19] Original songs for the series were written and produced by the duo Campfire (Shane Eli and Jonny Pakfar) based on themes by Djawadi. The duo also provided additional music for the series' score.[20]

Release
Win or Lose was initially announced to premiere on Disney+ in December 2023.[2][21][15][22] However, on November 15, 2023, it was announced that the series was delayed to 2024.[23] The series was then slated to premiere on December 6, 2024,[24][4] before being delayed again to February 19, 2025, swapping release dates with fellow Pixar series Dream Productions.[1] The series will consist of eight episodes, which will be released weekly.[5][1]

Marketing
On November 12, 2021, during Pixar's special for 2021's Disney+ Day, the first look at the concept art was revealed, offering a sneak peek at some of the characters featured in the series.[25] It received mostly positive response from Pixar fans.[26] On September 9, 2022, during the 2022 D23 Expo, Hobson and Yates presented a first look at the series.[10] On June 16, 2023, footage of the episode "Vanessa: The Cool Mom" was shown at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.[27][5] A teaser trailer was released on August 9, 2024,[24][4] while the official trailer was released on January 16, 2025.[7]

References
Milligan, Mercedes (September 24, 2024). "Disney+ Dates Debuts for 'Inside Out' Series 'Dream Productions' and 'Win or Lose'". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on September 25, 2024. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
"Pixar's First Original Series Win or Lose Coming to Disney+ Fall 2023". Pixar Post. December 14, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
@Pixar (September 10, 2022). "Up to bat at #D23Expo: a FIRST LOOK at Pixar's all-new Original series Win or Lose, with Will Forte as Coach Dan. From filmmakers Michael Yates, Carrie Hobson, and David Lally, Win or Lose comes to @DisneyPlus in 2023!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
"Trailer: First Original Pixar Series 'Win or Lose' Hits Disney+ in December". Animation Magazine. August 15, 2024. Archived from the original on August 17, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
Betti, Tony (June 16, 2023). "Annecy 2023 Recap: Pixar Presents Full Episode of Original Series Win or Lose Before Elemental Premiere". LaughingPlace.com. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
Rice, Lynette (December 17, 2024). "'Win Or Lose' Transgender Actress Speaks Out After Disney Cuts Her Storyline: "Very Disheartened"". Deadline. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
Milligan, Mercedes (January 16, 2025). "Trailer: 'Win or Lose' Brings Pixar's First Original Series to Disney+ Next Month". Animation Magazine. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
Leach, Alycia (December 19, 2022). "First Footage from Pixar's Historic Disney+ Show Released Online".
"Three New Pixar Series Coming to Disney+, Including the Very Adorable Up Spin-Off Dug Days". /Film. December 11, 2020. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
"Win Or Lose Footage Description: Pixar Makes Its First Animated Streaming Series [D23]". /Film. September 9, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
Total Film Christmas 2022 Issue 332
Magazine, Animation (March 1, 2023). "Rising Stars of Animation 2023". Animation Magazine. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
Gaur, Ryan (July 6, 2023). "Conversation with Team Behind New Pixar Series 'Win or Lose' | Carrie Hobson, Michael Yates, David Lally". Skwigly Animation Magazine. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
Lang, Jamie (July 7, 2023). "'Win Or Lose' Creators On Making Pixar's First Long-Form Series (Video Interview)". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
David Lally [@davidmlally] (July 26, 2023). "That's a wrap for post production! Skywalker Sound turned it UP for us!! WIN OR LOSE is 100% done! Now the long wait for December… :)" (Tweet). Retrieved August 29, 2023 – via Twitter.
McClintock, Pamela (December 17, 2024). "Disney Pulls Transgender Storyline from Pixar's 'Win or Lose' Streaming Series (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
Gaur, Ryan (July 6, 2023). "Conversation with Team Behind New Pixar Series 'Win or Lose' | Carrie Hobson, Michael Yates, David Lally". Skwigly Animation Magazine. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
@davidmlally (December 19, 2022). "The "Win or Lose" crew is made up of all the same artists that work on our Feature Films! Trying to make smart choices along with hard work! :)" (Tweet). Retrieved December 20, 2022 – via Twitter.
"Ramin Djawadi Scoring Pixar's Win or Lose". August 14, 2023. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
"ABOUT". CAMPFIRE. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
@disneyplus (November 12, 2021). "⚾ Step up to the plate and check out this first look art from @Pixar's Win or Lose, an all-new animated series coming to #DisneyPlus in Fall 2023! #DisneyPlusDay" (Tweet). Retrieved November 12, 2021 – via Twitter.
Palmer, Roger (May 16, 2023). "Pixar's Win or Lose Disney+ Release Window Revealed". What's On Disney Plus. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
Taylor, Drew (November 15, 2023). "Pixar's First Long-Form Original Streaming Series 'Win or Lose' Bumped to 2024". TheWrap. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
Taylor, Drew (August 9, 2024). "Pixar Reveals 'Win or Lose' Release Date, New Trailer | Video". TheWrap. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
"Pixar's Win Or Lose Images Tease Pixar's Unique New Animated Series". /Film. November 12, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
"Pixar Fans Are Loving Their First Look At The New Disney+ Series Win Or Lose". Looper. November 12, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
Milligan, Mercedes (April 27, 2023). "Annecy Unveils Feature Film Competition, First-Looks & Screening Events". Animation Magazine. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
External links
Official website
Win or Lose at IMDb
vte
Disney+ original series
vte
Pixar Animation Studios
Categories: Upcoming American television seriesUpcoming animated television seriesAmerican children's animated sports television seriesAmerican computer-animated television seriesAmerican English-language television showsBaseball animationDisney animated television seriesDisney and LGBTQDisney controversiesDisney+ original programmingLGBTQ-related controversies in animationTelevision series by Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios is an American CGI film production company based in Emeryville, California, United States.

The following is a list of all the television series or specials that Pixar has released or plan on releasing. Some of the television productions are produced by Pixar, while others are based on the studio's films.

Television series
Released
Title Seasons Episodes Year(s) Franchise Network Ref(s)
Premiere date End date
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command 1 62 October 2, 2000 January 13, 2001 Toy Story UPN / ABC [1][2]
Cars Toons 2 15 October 27, 2008 May 20, 2014 Cars Toon Disney (season 1) / Disney Channel (season 1–2) [3][4]
SparkShorts 1 11 January 18, 2019 Present N/A YouTube (season 1) / Disney+ (season 1–present) [5]
Forky Asks a Question 1 10 November 12, 2019 January 10, 2020 Toy Story Disney+ [6]
Pixar In Real Life 1 11 November 12, 2019 September 4, 2020 Various [7]
Inside Pixar 1 20 November 13, 2020 May 21, 2021 [8]
Pixar Popcorn 1 11 January 22, 2021 [9][10]
Monsters at Work 2 20 July 7, 2021 Present Monsters, Inc. Disney+ (season 1) / Disney Channel (season 2–present) [11][12]
Dug Days 1 6 September 1, 2021 June 16, 2023 Up Disney+ [13]
Cars on the Road 1 9 September 8, 2022 Cars [14][15]
A Real Bug's Life 2 10 January 24, 2024 Present A Bug's Life [16][17]
Lego Pixar: BrickToons 1 5 September 4, 2024 Various [18]
Dream Productions 1 4 December 11, 2024 Inside Out [19]
Upcoming
Title Seasons Episodes Year(s) Franchise Network Ref(s)
Premiere date
Win or Lose 1 8 February 19, 2025 N/A Disney+ [20][21]
Television specials
Title Premiere date Franchise Network Ref(s)
Toy Story of Terror! October 16, 2013 Toy Story ABC [22]
Toy Story That Time Forgot December 2, 2014 [23]
Cancelled projects
A Tin Toy Christmas
A half-hour television special, serving as a sequel to the short Tin Toy (1988) was considered, but Pixar felt convinced they could produce a feature film instead.[24] The project later became Toy Story (1995).

1906 TV series
In 2005, Brad Bird was collaborating with Pixar, Disney, and Warner Bros. on a live-action film and television series adaptation of James Dalessandro's novel 1906.[25][26] In 2010, Disney and Pixar left the project due to script problems and an estimated budget of $200 million.[27]

Cars Toons: Tales from Radiator Springs: To Protect and Serve
At the 2013 Disney D23 Expo, it was announced that a fifth episode of the television series Cars Toons: Tales from Radiator Springs, entitled To Protect and Serve, was in production.[28][29]

Untitled Win or Lose follow-up series
A follow-up television series of Win or Lose was in development, but it was quietly cancelled.[30][31][32]

See also
List of Pixar films
List of Pixar shorts
List of Disney Television Animation productions
List of Disney television series
References
Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 101–102. ISBN 978-1538103739.
"Buzz Lightyear of Star Command". Big Cartoon Database. May 13, 2012. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
"Cars Toons Coming in October To Disney Channel". Animation World Network. September 26, 2008. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Bryko (August 11, 2013). "D23 Expo Round-Up: 'Toy Story of Terror', New Cars Toons on the Way". Pixar Planet. Archived from the original on March 19, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Bui, Hoai-Tran (January 11, 2019). "Pixar's Announces New Short Film Program, SparkShorts". /Film. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
White, James (June 12, 2019). "Pixar Creating Forky-Focused Short Films For Disney". Empire. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
"Pixar In Real Life". Improv Everywhere. December 2, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
Pearson, Ben (November 11, 2020). "'Inside Pixar' Trailer: New Disney+ Documentary Series Debuts This Week". /Film. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
"Pixar Popcorn: An Absolute Delight". Scifibloggers. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
Moulton, Ashley. "Parents' Guide to Pixar Popcorn". Common Sense Media. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
Littleton, Cynthia (November 9, 2017). "New 'Star Wars' Trilogy in Works With Rian Johnson, TV Series Also Coming to Disney Streaming Service". Variety. Archived from the original on November 10, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Goldberg, Lesley (April 9, 2019). "'Monsters, Inc.' Voice Cast to Return for Disney+ Series (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
"Three New Pixar Series Coming to Disney+, Including the Very Adorable 'Up' Spin-Off 'Dug Days'". /Film. December 11, 2020. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Del Rosario, Alexandra (November 12, 2021). "Disney+'s 'Cars' Series Gets Title, 'Tiana' Enlists Stella Meghie As Writer/Director; First-Look Images Released". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Behzadi, Sofia (August 1, 2022). "'Cars On The Road' Pixar Series Gets Premiere Date On Disney+, First-Look Trailer". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Danoff, Owen (December 5, 2024). "National Geographic's A Real Bug's Life Season 2 Drops A Premiere Date & New Trailer Featuring Awkwafina". Screen Rant. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
White, Peter (February 8, 2024). "'Limitless With Chris Hemsworth' & 'A Real Bug's Life' Renewed For Season 2 At Nat Geo & Disney+". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
Milligan, Mercedes (August 21, 2024). "'LEGO Pixar: BrickToons' Brings Beloved Characters into Newly Built Adventures". Animation Magazine. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
Shanfeld, Ethan (September 24, 2024). "'Inside Out' Spinoff Series 'Dream Productions' and Pixar's 'Win or Lose' Set Disney+ Release Dates and Unveil New Footage". Variety. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
Taylor, Drew (November 15, 2023). "Pixar's First Long-Form Original Streaming Series 'Win or Lose' Bumped to 2024". The Wrap. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Milligan, Mercedes (January 16, 2025). "Trailer: 'Win or Lose' Brings Pixar's First Original Series to Disney+ Next Month". Animation Magazine. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
Cheney, Alexandra (October 13, 2013). "Watch A Clip from Pixar's First TV Special 'Toy Story of Terror!'". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Sciretta, Peter (July 24, 2014). "'Toy Story That Time Forgot' Is A 1980's Nostalgia Bomb That You're Gonna Love (Comic Con 2014)". /Film. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Hill, Jim (December 14, 2007). "The Pixar TV special you never got to see, "A Tin Toy Christmas"". Jim Hill Media. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Chitwood, Adam (June 18, 2018). "Brad Bird Says '1906' May Get Made as an "Amalgam" of a TV and Film Project". Collider. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
Bastoli, Mike (March 13, 2008). "'1906' to be Disney/Pixar/Warner Bros./? collaboration". Big Screen Animation. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
Fischer, Russ (January 27, 2010). "What Happened to Brad Bird's 1906?". /Film. Archived from the original on August 10, 2019. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
@ThePixarTimes (August 10, 2013). "Pixar working on two new Cars Toons: 'Radiator Springs 500 1/2,' and 'To Protect and Serve.' To debut on Disney Channel in 2014. #D23Expo" (Tweet). Retrieved August 22, 2024 – via Twitter.
"Exclusive First Look at the Upcoming Cars Toon 'To Protect and Serve'". Pixar Post. October 30, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Taylor, Drew (July 5, 2023). "Inside Pixar's Existential Crisis and Leadership Change". TheWrap. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Reynolds, Maca (July 8, 2023). "Pixar's Win or Lose Follow-Up Project Reportedly Canceled". MovieWeb. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
Cimaglio, Zachary (July 7, 2023). "Disney+ Quietly Cancels Animated Pixar Spinoff Series". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
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Pixar Animation Studios
A subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of The Walt Disney Company.
Feature films
Toy Story (1995)A Bug's Life (1998)Toy Story 2 (1999)Monsters, Inc. (2001)Finding Nemo (2003)The Incredibles (2004)Cars (2006)Ratatouille (2007)WALL-E (2008)Up (2009)Toy Story 3 (2010)Cars 2 (2011)Brave (2012)Monsters University (2013)Inside Out (2015)The Good Dinosaur (2015)Finding Dory (2016)Cars 3 (2017)Coco (2017)Incredibles 2 (2018)Toy Story 4 (2019)Onward (2020)Soul (2020)Luca (2021)Turning Red (2022)Lightyear (2022)Elemental (2023)Inside Out 2 (2024)
Upcoming
Elio (2025)Toy Story 5 (2026)
Short films
Original
The Adventures of André & Wally B. (1984)Luxo Jr. (1986)Red's Dream (1987)Tin Toy (1988)Knick Knack (1989)Geri's Game (1997)For the Birds (2000)Boundin' (2003)One Man Band (2005)Lifted (2006)Presto (2008)Partly Cloudy (2009)Day & Night (2010)La Luna (2011)The Blue Umbrella (2013)Lava (2014)Sanjay's Super Team (2015)Piper (2016)Lou (2017)Bao (2018)
SparkShorts
Purl (2019)Smash and Grab (2019)Kitbull (2019)Float (2019)Wind (2019)Loop (2020)Out (2020)Burrow (2020)Twenty Something (2021)Nona (2021)Self (2024)
Feature-related
Mike's New Car (2002)Jack-Jack Attack (2005)Mr. Incredible and Pals (2005)Mater and the Ghostlight (2006)Your Friend the Rat (2007)BURN-E (2008)Dug's Special Mission (2009)George and A.J. (2009)The Legend of Mor'du (2012)Party Central (2013)Riley's First Date? (2015)22 vs. Earth (2021)Ciao Alberto (2021)
Series
Cars Toons (2008–14)Toy Story Toons (2011–12)Forky Asks a Question (2019–20)Dug Days (2021–23) Carl's DateCars on the Road (2022)
Compilations
Tiny Toy Stories (1996)Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 1 (2007)Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2 (2012)Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 3 (2018)
Other works
Beach Chair (1986)Flags and Waves (1986)
Limited streaming series
Dream Productions (2024)
Upcoming
Win or Lose (2025)
Television specials
Toy Story of Terror! (2013)Toy Story That Time Forgot (2014)
Franchises
Toy StoryMonsters, Inc.Finding NemoThe IncrediblesCarsInside Out
Associated
productions
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins (2000; direct-to-video film)Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000–01; television series)Exploring the Reef (2003; short film)Planes (2013)The Dam Keeper (2014; short film)Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014)Borrowed Time (2016; short film)Weekends (2017; short film)Monsters at Work (2021–present; television series)Starling (2023; short film)
Characters
Luxo Jr.Toy Story WoodyBuzz LightyearJessieBo PeepMonsters, Inc. Mike WazowskiDoryThe Incredibles Bob ParrHelen ParrDash ParrViolet ParrEdna ModeCars Lightning McQueenTow MaterSally CarreraWALL-EMeridaJoy
Documentaries
The Pixar Story (2007)A Spark Story (2021)
Disney attractions
and experiences
It's Tough to Be a Bug! (1998)Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (1998)A Bug's Land (2002)Turtle Talk with Crush (2004)The Seas with Nemo & Friends (2007)Cars Quatre Roues Rallye (2007)Crush's Coaster (2007)Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage (2007)Toy Story Mania! (2008)Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek (2009)Toy Story Land (2010) RC Racer (2010)Slinky Dog Zigzag Spin (2010)Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop (2010)Alien Swirling Saucers (2018)Slinky Dog Dash (2018)Cars Land (2012) Luigi's Flying Tires (2012)Radiator Springs Racers (2012)Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters (2016)Remy's Ratatouille Adventure (2014)Nemo & Friends SeaRider (2017)Pixar Pier (2018) Games of Pixar Pier (2018)Incredicoaster (2018)Pixar Pal-A-Round (2018)Jessie's Critter Carousel (2019)Lightning McQueen's Racing Academy (2019)
Products
Pixar Image Computer
Software
RenderManPresto Animation System
People
John LasseterEdwin CatmullSteve JobsAlvy Ray SmithJim MorrisPete Docter
See also
Awards and nominations feature filmsshort filmsFilm referencesComputer Graphics LabIndustrial Light & MagicLucasfilm AnimationCircle Seven AnimationPixar CanadaPixar Photoscience TeamComputer Animation Production SystemA Computer Animated HandThe WorksThe Shadow KingRush: A Disney–Pixar AdventureDisney InfinityFortniteKingdom Hearts IIIWalt Disney Animation StudiosDisneytoon Studios20th Century Animation
Category Work group
Categories: Disney-related listsLists of television seriesPixarPixar listsTelevision series by DisneyTelevision series by Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios

Logo used since 1995

Headquarters in Emeryville, California
Company type Subsidiary
Traded as Nasdaq: PIXR (1995–2006)
Industry Animation
Predecessor The Graphics Group of Lucasfilm Computer Division (1979–1986)
Founded February 3, 1986; 38 years ago in Richmond, California
Founders
Edwin Catmull
Alvy Ray Smith
Headquarters 1200 Park Avenue, Emeryville, California, U.S.
Area served Worldwide
Key people
Jim Morris (CEO & President)
Pete Docter (CCO)
Products Computer animations
Brands
Pixar Image ComputerPixar RenderMan
Number of employees 1,233 (2020)
Parent Walt Disney Studios (2006–present)
Website www.pixar.com Edit this at Wikidata
Footnotes / references
[1][2][3]
Pixar Animation Studios, known simply as Pixar (/ˈpɪksɑːr/), is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of Disney Entertainment, a segment of The Walt Disney Company.

Pixar started in 1979 as part of the Lucasfilm computer division. It was known as the Graphics Group before its spin-off as a corporation in 1986, with funding from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, who became its majority shareholder.[2] Disney announced its acquisition of Pixar in January 2006, and completed it in May 2006.[4][5][6] Pixar is best known for its feature films, technologically powered by RenderMan, the company's own implementation of the industry-standard RenderMan Interface Specification image-rendering API. The studio's mascot is Luxo Jr., a desk lamp from the studio's 1986 short film of the same name.

Pixar has produced 28 feature films, from Toy Story (1995), which is also the first fully computer-animated feature film, to its most recent film, Inside Out 2 (2024), and many short films. As of July 2023, its feature films have earned over $15 billion at the worldwide box office with an average gross of $589 million per film.[7] Toy Story 3 (2010), Finding Dory (2016), Incredibles 2 (2018), Toy Story 4 (2019) and the aforementioned Inside Out 2 all grossed over $1 billion and are among the 50 highest-grossing films of all time. Moreover, 15 of Pixar's films are in the 50 highest-grossing animated films of all time. Inside Out 2 is currently the highest-grossing animated film of all time.[8]

Pixar has earned 23 Academy Awards, 10 Golden Globe Awards, and 11 Grammy Awards, along with numerous other awards and acknowledgments. Since its inauguration in 2001, eleven Pixar films have won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, including Finding Nemo (2003), The Incredibles (2004), Ratatouille (2007), WALL-E (2008), Up (2009), the aforementioned Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4, Brave (2012), Inside Out (2015), Coco (2017), and Soul (2020). Toy Story 3 and Up were also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

In February 2009, Pixar executives John Lasseter, Brad Bird, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich were presented with the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement by the Venice Film Festival. The physical award was ceremoniously handed to Lucasfilm's founder, George Lucas.

History
Early history

A Pixar computer at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View with the 1986–95 logo on it
Pixar got its start in 1974, when New York Institute of Technology's (NYIT) founder, Alexander Schure, who was also the owner of a traditional animation studio, established the Computer Graphics Lab (CGL) and recruited computer scientists who shared his ambitions about creating the world's first computer-animated film.[citation needed] Edwin Catmull and Malcolm Blanchard were the first to be hired and were soon joined by Alvy Ray Smith and David DiFrancesco some months later, who were the four original members of the Computer Graphics Lab, located in a converted two-story garage acquired from the former Vanderbilt-Whitney estate.[9][10] Schure invested significant funds into the computer graphics lab, approximately $15 million, providing the resources the group needed but contributing to NYIT's financial difficulties.[11] Eventually, the group realized they needed to work in a real film studio to reach their goal. Francis Ford Coppola then invited Smith to his house for a three-day media conference, where Coppola and George Lucas shared their visions for the future of digital moviemaking.[12]

When Lucas approached the group and offered them a job at his studio, six employees moved to Lucasfilm. During the following months, they gradually resigned from CGL, found temporary jobs for about a year to avoid making Schure suspicious, and joined the Graphics Group at Lucasfilm.[13][14] The Graphics Group, which was one-third of the Computer Division of Lucasfilm, was launched in 1979 with the hiring of Catmull from NYIT,[15] where he was in charge of the Computer Graphics Lab. He was then reunited with Smith, who also made the journey from NYIT to Lucasfilm, and was made the director of the Graphics Group. At NYIT, the researchers pioneered many of the CG foundation techniques — in particular, the invention of the alpha channel by Catmull and Smith.[16] Over the next several years, the CGL would produce a few frames of an experimental film called The Works. After moving to Lucasfilm, the team worked on creating the precursor to RenderMan, called REYES (for "renders everything you ever saw"), and developed several critical technologies for CG — including particle effects and various animation tools.[17]

John Lasseter was hired to the Lucasfilm team for a week in late 1983 with the title "interface designer"; he animated the short film The Adventures of André & Wally B.[18] In the next few years, a designer suggested naming a new digital compositing computer the "Picture Maker". Smith suggested that the laser-based device have a catchier name, and came up with "Pixer", which after a meeting was changed to "Pixar".[19] According to Michael Rubin, the author of Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution, Smith and three other employees came up with the name during a restaurant visit in 1981, but when interviewing them he got four different versions about the origin of the name.[20]

In 1982, the Pixar team began working on special-effects film sequences with Industrial Light & Magic. After years of research, and key milestones such as the Genesis Effect in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and the Stained Glass Knight in Young Sherlock Holmes,[15] the group, which then numbered 40 individuals, was spun out as a corporation in February 1986 by Catmull and Smith. Among the 38 remaining employees were Malcolm Blanchard, David DiFrancesco, Ralph Guggenheim, and Bill Reeves, who had been part of the team since the days of NYIT. Tom Duff, also an NYIT member, would later join Pixar after its formation.[2] With Lucas's 1983 divorce, which coincided with the sudden dropoff in revenues from Star Wars licenses following the release of Return of the Jedi, they knew he would most likely sell the whole Graphics Group. Worried that the employees would be lost to them if that happened, which would prevent the creation of the first computer-animated movie, they concluded that the best way to keep the team together was to turn the group into an independent company. But Moore's Law also suggested that sufficient computing power for the first film was still some years away, and they needed to focus on a proper product until then. Eventually, they decided they should be a hardware company in the meantime, with their Pixar Image Computer as the core product, a system primarily sold to governmental, scientific, and medical markets.[2][11][21] They also used SGI computers.[22]

In 1983, Nolan Bushnell founded a new computer-guided animation studio called Kadabrascope as a subsidiary of his Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatres company (PTT), which was founded in 1977. Only one major project was made out of the new studio, an animated Christmas special for NBC starring Chuck E. Cheese and other PTT mascots; known as "Chuck E. Cheese: The Christmas That Almost Wasn't". The animation movement would be made using tweening instead of traditional cel animation. After the video game crash of 1983, Bushnell started selling some subsidiaries of PTT to keep the business afloat. Sente Technologies (another division, was founded to have games distributed in PTT stores) was sold to Bally Games and Kadabrascope was sold to Lucasfilm. The Kadabrascope assets were combined with the Computer Division of Lucasfilm.[23] Coincidentally, one of Steve Jobs's first jobs was under Bushnell in 1973 as a technician at his other company Atari, which Bushnell sold to Warner Communications in 1976 to focus on PTT.[24] PTT would later go bankrupt in 1984 and be acquired by ShowBiz Pizza Place.[25]

Independent company (1986–1999)

A Luxo Jr. figure display in Hong Kong
In 1986, the newly independent Pixar was headed by President Edwin Catmull and Executive Vice President Alvy Ray Smith. Lucas's search for investors led to an offer from Steve Jobs, which Lucas initially found too low. He eventually accepted after determining it impossible to find other investors. At that point, Smith and Catmull had been declined by 35 venture capitalists and ten large corporations,[26] including a deal with General Motors which fell through three days before signing the contracts.[27] Jobs, who had been edged out of Apple in 1985,[2] was now founder and CEO of the new computer company NeXT. On February 3, 1986, he paid $5 million of his own money to George Lucas for technology rights and invested $5 million cash as capital into the company, joining the board of directors as chairman.[2][28]

In 1985 while still at Lucasfilm, they had made a deal with the Japanese publisher Shogakukan to make a computer-animated movie called Monkey, based on the Monkey King. The project continued sometime after they became a separate company in 1986, but it became clear that the technology was not sufficiently advanced. The computers were not powerful enough and the budget would be too high. As a result, they focused on the computer hardware business for years until a computer-animated feature became feasible according to Moore's law.[29][30]

At the time, Walt Disney Studios made the decision to develop more efficient ways of producing animation. They reached out to Graphics Group at Lucasfilm and to Digital Productions. Because of the Graphics Group's deeper understanding of animation, and Smith's experience with paint programs at NYIT, it convinced Disney they were the right choice. In May 1986 Pixar signed a contract with Disney, who eventually bought and used the Pixar Image Computer and custom software written by Pixar as part of its Computer Animation Production System (CAPS) project, to migrate the laborious ink and paint part of the 2D animation process to a more automated method.[31] The company's first feature film to be released using this new animation method was The Rescuers Down Under (1990).[32][33]

In a bid to drive sales of the system and increase the company's capital, Jobs suggested releasing the product to the mainstream market. Pixar employee John Lasseter, who had long been working on not-for-profit short demonstration animations, such as Luxo Jr. (1986) to show off the device's capabilities, premiered his creations to great fanfare at SIGGRAPH, the computer graphics industry's largest convention.[34]

However, the Image Computer had inadequate sales[34] which threatened to end the company as financial losses grew. Jobs increased investment in exchange for an increased stake, reducing the proportion of management and employee ownership until eventually, his total investment of $50 million gave him control of the entire company. In 1989, Lasseter's growing animation department which was originally composed of just four people (Lasseter, Bill Reeves, Eben Ostby, and Sam Leffler), was turned into a division that produced computer-animated commercials for outside companies.[1][35][36] In April 1990, Pixar sold its hardware division, including all proprietary hardware technology and imaging software, to Vicom Systems, and transferred 18 of Pixar's approximately 100 employees. In the same year Pixar moved from San Rafael to Richmond, California.[37] Pixar released some of its software tools on the open market for Macintosh and Windows systems. RenderMan is one of the leading 3D packages of the early 1990s, and Typestry is a special-purpose 3D text renderer that competed with RayDream.[citation needed]

During this period of time, Pixar continued its successful relationship with Walt Disney Feature Animation, a studio whose corporate parent would ultimately become its most important partner. As 1991 began, however, the layoff of 30 employees in the company's computer hardware department—including the company's president, Chuck Kolstad,[38] reduced the total number of employees to just 42, approximately its original number.[39] On March 6, 1991, Steve Jobs bought the company from its employees and became the full owner. He contemplated folding it into NeXT, but the NeXT's co-founders refused.[27] A few months later Pixar made a historic $26 million deal with Disney to produce three computer-animated feature films, the first of which was Toy Story (1995), the product of the technological limitations that challenged CGI.[40] By then the software programmers working on RenderMan and IceMan, and Lasseter's animation department, which made television commercials (and four Luxo Jr. shorts for Sesame Street the same year), were all that remained of Pixar.[41]

Despite the income from these projects, the company still continued to lose money and Steve Jobs, as chairman of the board and now owner, often considered selling it. As late as 1994, Jobs contemplated selling Pixar to other companies such as Hallmark Cards, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, and Oracle CEO and co-founder Larry Ellison.[42] After learning from New York critics that Toy Story would probably be a hit, and confirming that Disney would distribute it for the 1995 Christmas season, he decided to give Pixar another chance.[43][44] Also for the first time, he took an active leadership role in the company and made himself CEO.[45] Toy Story grossed more than $373 million worldwide[46] and, when Pixar held its initial public offering on November 29, 1995, it exceeded Netscape's as the biggest IPO of the year. In its first half-hour of trading, Pixar stock shot from $22 to $45, delaying trading because of unmatched buy orders. Shares climbed to US$49 and closed the day at $39.[47]

The company continued to make the television commercials during the production of Toy Story, which came to an end on July 9, 1996, when Pixar announced they would shut down its television commercial unit, which counted 18 employees, to focus on longer projects and interactive entertainment.[48][49]

During the 1990s and 2000s, Pixar gradually developed the "Pixar Braintrust", the studio's primary creative development process, in which all of its directors, writers, and lead storyboard artists regularly examine each other's projects and give very candid "notes", the industry term for constructive criticism.[50] The Braintrust operates under a philosophy of a "filmmaker-driven studio", in which creatives help each other move their films forward through a process somewhat like peer review, as opposed to the traditional Hollywood approach of an "executive-driven studio" in which directors are micromanaged through "mandatory notes" from development executives outranking the producers.[51][52] According to Catmull, it evolved out of the working relationship between Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, Lee Unkrich, and Joe Ranft on Toy Story.[50]

As a result of the success of Toy Story, Pixar built a new studio at the Emeryville campus which was designed by PWP Landscape Architecture and opened in November 2000.[citation needed]

Collaboration with Disney (1999–2006)
Pixar and Disney had disagreements over the production of Toy Story 2. Originally intended as a direct-to-video release (and thus not part of Pixar's three-picture deal), the film was eventually upgraded to a theatrical release during production. Pixar demanded that the film then be counted toward the three-picture agreement, but Disney refused.[53] Though profitable for both, Pixar later complained that the arrangement was not equitable. Pixar was responsible for creation and production, while Disney handled marketing and distribution. Profits and production costs were split equally, but Disney exclusively owned all story, character, and sequel rights and also collected a 10- to 15-percent distribution fee.[54]

The two companies attempted to reach a new agreement for ten months and failed on January 26, 2001, July 26, 2002, April 22, 2003, January 16, 2004, July 22, 2004, and January 14, 2005. The proposed distribution deal meant Pixar would control production and own the resulting story, character, and sequel rights, while Disney would own the right of first refusal to distribute any sequels. Pixar also wanted to finance its own films and collect 100 percent profit, paying Disney the 10- to 15-percent distribution fee.[55] In addition, as part of any distribution agreement with Disney, Pixar demanded control over films already in production under the old agreement, including The Incredibles (2004) and Cars (2006). Disney considered these conditions unacceptable, but Pixar would not concede.

Disagreements between Steve Jobs and Disney chairman and CEO Michael Eisner caused the negotiations to cease in 2004, with Disney forming Circle Seven Animation and Jobs declaring that Pixar was actively seeking partners other than Disney.[56] Despite this announcement and several talks with Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, and 20th Century Fox, Pixar did not enter negotiations with other distributors,[57] although a Warner Bros. spokesperson told CNN, "We would love to be in business with Pixar. They are a great company."[55] After a lengthy hiatus, negotiations between the two companies resumed following the departure of Eisner from Disney in September 2005. In preparation for potential fallout between Pixar and Disney, Jobs announced in late 2004 that Pixar would no longer release movies at the Disney-dictated November time frame, but during the more lucrative early summer months. This would also allow Pixar to release DVDs for its major releases during the Christmas shopping season. An added benefit of delaying Cars from November 4, 2005, to June 9, 2006, was to extend the time frame remaining on the Pixar-Disney contract, to see how things would play out between the two companies.[57]

Pending the Disney acquisition of Pixar, the two companies created a distribution deal for the intended 2007 release of Ratatouille, to ensure that if the acquisition failed, this one film would be released through Disney's distribution channels. In contrast to the earlier Pixar deal, Ratatouille was meant to remain a Pixar property and Disney would have received a distribution fee. The completion of Disney's Pixar acquisition, however, nullified this distribution arrangement.[58]

Walt Disney Studios subsidiary (2006–present)
After extended negotiations, Disney ultimately agreed on January 24, 2006, to buy Pixar for approximately $7.4 billion in an all-stock deal.[59] Following Pixar shareholder approval, the acquisition was completed on May 5, 2006. The transaction catapulted Jobs, who owned 49.65% of total share interest in Pixar, to Disney's largest individual shareholder with 7%, valued at $3.9 billion, and a new seat on its board of directors.[6][60] Jobs' new Disney holdings exceeded holdings belonging to Eisner, the previous top shareholder, who still held 1.7%; and Disney Director Emeritus Roy E. Disney, who held almost 1% of the corporation's shares. Pixar shareholders received 2.3 shares of Disney common stock for each share of Pixar common stock redeemed.[61]

As part of the deal, John Lasseter, by then Executive Vice President, became Chief Creative Officer (reporting directly to president and CEO Bob Iger and consulting with Disney Director Roy E. Disney) of both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios (including its division Disneytoon Studios), as well as the Principal Creative Adviser at Walt Disney Imagineering, which designs and builds the company's theme parks.[60] Catmull retained his position as President of Pixar, while also becoming President of Walt Disney Animation Studios, reporting to Iger and Dick Cook, chairman of the Walt Disney Studios. Jobs's position as Pixar's chairman and chief executive officer was abolished, and instead, he took a place on the Disney board of directors.[62]

After the deal closed in May 2006, Lasseter revealed that Iger had felt that Disney needed to buy Pixar while watching a parade at the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland in September 2005.[63] Iger noticed that of all the Disney characters in the parade, none were characters that Disney had created within the last ten years since all the newer ones had been created by Pixar.[63] Upon returning to Burbank, Iger commissioned a financial analysis that confirmed that Disney had actually lost money on animation for the past decade, then presented that information to the board of directors at his first board meeting after being promoted from COO to CEO, and the board, in turn, authorized him to explore the possibility of a deal with Pixar.[64] Lasseter and Catmull were wary when the topic of Disney buying Pixar first came up, but Jobs asked them to give Iger a chance (based on his own experience negotiating with Iger in summer 2005 for the rights to ABC shows for the fifth-generation iPod Classic),[65] and in turn, Iger convinced them of the sincerity of his feeling that Disney needed to re-focus on animation.[63]

John Lasseter appears with characters from Up at the 2009 Venice Film Festival.
Lasseter and Catmull's oversight of both the Disney Feature Animation and Pixar studios did not mean that the two studios were merging, however. In fact, additional conditions were laid out as part of the deal to ensure that Pixar remained a separate entity, a concern that analysts had expressed about the Disney deal.[66][page needed] Some of those conditions were that Pixar HR policies would remain intact, including the lack of employment contracts. Also, the Pixar name was guaranteed to continue, and the studio would remain in its current Emeryville, California, location with the "Pixar" sign. Finally, branding of films made post-merger would be "Disney•Pixar" (beginning with Cars).[67]

Jim Morris, producer of WALL-E (2008), became general manager of Pixar. In this new position, Morris took charge of the day-to-day running of the studio facilities and products.[68]

After a few years, Lasseter and Catmull were able to successfully transfer the basic principles of the Pixar Braintrust to Disney Animation, although meetings of the Disney Story Trust are reportedly "more polite" than those of the Pixar Braintrust.[69] Catmull later explained that after the merger, to maintain the studios' separate identities and cultures (notwithstanding the fact of common ownership and common senior management), he and Lasseter "drew a hard line" that each studio was solely responsible for its own projects and would not be allowed to borrow personnel from or lend tasks out to the other.[70][71] The rule ensures that each studio maintains "local ownership" of projects and can be proud of its own work.[70][71] Thus for example, when Pixar had issues with Ratatouille and Disney Animation had issues with Bolt (2008), "nobody bailed them out" and each studio was required "to solve the problem on its own" despite knowing that there were personnel at the other studio who theoretically could have helped.[70][71]

Expansion and John Lasseter's exit (2010–2018)
On April 20, 2010, Pixar opened Pixar Canada in the downtown area of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.[72] The roughly 2,000 square meters studio produced seven short films based on Toy Story and Cars characters. In October 2013, the studio was closed down to refocus Pixar's efforts at its main headquarters.[73]

In November 2014, Morris was promoted to president of Pixar, while his counterpart at Disney Animation, general manager Andrew Millstein, was also promoted to president of that studio.[74] Both continued to report to Catmull, who retained the title of president of both Disney Animation and Pixar.[74]

On November 21, 2017, Lasseter announced that he was taking a six-month leave of absence after acknowledging what he called "missteps" in his behavior with employees in a memo to staff. According to The Hollywood Reporter and The Washington Post, Lasseter had a history of alleged sexual misconduct towards employees.[75][76][77] On June 8, 2018, it was announced that Lasseter would leave Disney Animation and Pixar at the end of the year, but would take on a consulting role until then.[78] Pete Docter was announced as Lasseter's replacement as chief creative officer of Pixar on June 19, 2018.[79]

Sequels and financial success (2018–2019)
On June 15, 2018, Incredibles 2 was released, setting a record for widest opening weekend worldwide and domestic for an animated film.[80] The film would eventually gross $1.2 billion worldwide.[81] On October 23, 2018, it was announced that Catmull would be retiring. He stayed in an adviser role until July 2019.[82] On January 18, 2019, it was announced that Lee Unkrich would be leaving Pixar after 25 years.[83] On June 21, 2019, Toy Story 4 was released, surpassing the widest opening worldwide weekend record that