MONSTERS INC 2 & BRAVE set for 2012 from Pixar
Pixar will release TWO movies in 2012!!
One of the defining differences between Pixar and Dreamworks (apart from the quality of the animation and the subtly of the story telling) is that Pixar rarely make sequels. Thus far, only Toy Story 2 has been an extension to a franchise and it was one of high-quality (with many thinking it surpassed the original).
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Of course, Toy Story 3 is out this summer and Cars 2 (why?) has been in production for a while, but it is still surprising to find that a sequel to Pete Docters 2001 hit Monsters Inc. has now been given the green light. It is not yet known whether Docter (who made last years splendid Up) will be involved in the project, but you can expect Billy Crystal and John Goodman to reprise their roles as Mike and Sully, two monsters originally tasked with scaring children to produce electricity (dont ask). Is this a bad sign for Pixar? Arguably all these sequels are films which came into production since they were purchased by Disney in 2006, whereas all the great original films of the last few years (Ratatouille, Wall-E and Up) were in production before that point. Does this mean that Pixar are becoming a bit more corporate? Well, apparently not, for 2012 should see the release of a more encouraging film also announced the other day in the form of Brave(previously titled The Bear and the Bow). Directed by Brenda Chapman (The Prince of Egypt), it is Pixars first film by a female director and, more significantly, it is an original story. Apparently set in a world similar to that of Grimm fairytales, Brave boasts the voice acting talent of Reese Witherspoon, as well as the British trio of Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly and Julie Walters. With Brad Bird (The Incredibles) and Andrew Stanton (Wall-E) moving into live-action filmmaking of late, lets hope that Chapman can pull this one off.