DISNEY TO RELEASE TOY STORY 3 IN 2009
John Lasseter, chief creative officer of Disney Animation, has apparently dropped his opposition to a second Toy Story sequel, confirming Thursday that Toy Story 3 is currently being developed for release in 2009. He said it will be directed by Lee Unkrich, co-director of Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo. One of Lasseter's first acts following the Disney-Pixar merger last year was to scrap Disney's separate plans for sequels to Pixar's hits. In an interview with Fortune, he said at the time, "I loved these characters that we have created. They're like family, like children. And if we didn't get a deal, Disney would own our children. Who knew what they would do? These were the people that put out Cinderella II." On Thursday, Lasseter remarked, "The greatest thing about the merger of the two companies is that the creators of Toy Story 1 and 2 can make 3 with the story that we wanted."