John Lasseter Steps Down as Co-Director of ‘Toy Story 4’

Co-director Josh Cooley takes over the Disney Animation/Pixar sequel

toy story 4

At the D23 Expo in Anaheim, Disney Animation and Pixar head John Lasseter announced that he is stepping down as director of “Toy Story 4,” with co-director Josh Cooley taking over as director.

Lasseter says he will stay on the project as producer. Cooley previously worked as a storyboard artist at Pixar and co-wrote the script of “Inside Out.” Cooley also directed “Riley’s First Date,” a short film featuring the “Inside Out” characters.

Cooley then joined Lasseter onstage for a formal introduction and to present a special video where he introduced Pixar fans to the team working on the upcoming film and took them around Pixar’s studios in Emeryville, CA.

At the D23 Expo in 2015, Lasseter revealed that the story of “Toy Story 4” would focus on Woody’s romance with Bo Peep, who was missing from the main story in “Toy Story 3,” and would see Woody and Buzz set out to discover what happened to her. Produced by Jonas Rivera (“Inside Out”), “Toy Story 4” is slated for release on June 21, 2019.

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