After the best opening box office weekend of 2024, it’s safe to declare that “Inside Out 2” is the much-needed success Pixar hoped it would be. But has the sequel righted the studio’s ship entirely? Only time will tell there, but its continued success this week foretells the film may end up, against all odds, the movie of the summer, if not the year. And Pixar may have known they had a winner all along, as Deadline reports (via EW) a new “Inside Out” project on the way in 2025 (although it arguably fits the model that got Pixar in such trouble in the first place).
READ MORE: ‘Inside Out 2’ Review: Anxiety Attempts A Takeover In A Fantastic Pixar Sequel
So what’s on the horizon for the now-teenaged Riley? In a new interview with EW, Pixar CCO Pete Docter announced that an “Inside Out” spinoff series will hit Disney+ next year. What’s more: Pixar has already wrapped work on it. “We have finished,” confirmed Docter. “It’s coming out next spring. I’m not sure that there’s been a specific release date.” And while the CCO didn’t give any major plot details for the series, much less how many episodes it’ll be or if the main cast of the movies will return, he did hint at what the show will be about.
“In the first film, remember we go to Dream Production to see how Riley’s dreams are made? It semi-explains why they’re so weird,” Docter continued. That centers the new series in a different location of Riley’s inner life than the emotion’s workstation, a hint that Amy Poehler, Maya Hawke & co. may not be a part of the main cast, and only cameo on the show. But that’s all speculation at this point. But the narrative oscillation between Riley’s inner and outer lives, and her conscious and unconscious motivations, will still be at the forefront of the Disney+ show’s story. “We’ve continued the exploration of the power of dreams and how they affect us in our waking life, as well,” explained Docter, so it’s pretty cool.”
But is it a good idea for Pixar to return to leaning on Disney+ for new releases? Even if the next “Inside Out” adventure is a spinoff, it’s still a mindset that hasn’t worked out for the animation studio in the short term. Releasing “Soul,” “Luca,” and “Seeing Red” on the platform during Hollywood’s COVID-19 era led to severe diminishing returns for Pixar after it started releasing movies in theaters again with 2022’s “Lightyear.” Last year’s “Elemental” did fare much better, with many critics considering it a sign that the studio was in its twilight of popularity and cultural relevance.
But for better or worse, “Inside Out 2” has smashed that narrative apart. The new sequel is Pixar’s second-biggest domestic opening of all time and also holds the title of the biggest animated movie opening worldwide with $295 million. In other words, this movie has legs, and if it continues to hold its current pace, it’ll rank as one of 2024’s biggest financial triumphs. But hot box office numbers don’t necessarily make “Inside Out 2” an overall win for Pixar. The sequel has fared well with critics overall, with a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But certain writers cite the film’s redundant story, flawed internal logic, and reducing the inner life of a child (and by extension, the audience’s) to a universal factory that resembles a workplace. So while “Inside Out 2” may be a box office winner, it doesn’t guarantee everyone takes Pixar seriously again from here on out.
Let’s see how “Inside Out 2” fares the rest of the summer. But wherever the studio slots his spinoff series on its 2025 calendar will tell audiences how confident they are about it and their future. If it’s before “Elio,” which hits theaters on June 13, 2025, then the Disney+ series may not be the last time audiences see Riley Anderson.