Pixar came to D23 with a little bit of everything: superheroes, ghosts, cats, returning favorites and one very unexpected trip back to the Land of the Dead.
Disney Entertainment, Studios Chairman Alan Bergman introduced Pixar Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter during the Disney Entertainment Showcase, praising the studio’s continued mix of heart and humor while noting the success of Hoppers and Toy Story 5.
Then Docter started opening the vault.
The first major reveal was an exclusive look at Incredibles 3, bringing the Parr family back into action for another superhero adventure.
Peter Sohn will direct, with Dana Murray and Brad Bird producing. The film is scheduled to hit theaters June 16, 2028.
For a franchise that has always balanced superhero spectacle with very relatable family chaos, the return of the Incredibles instantly became one of Pixar’s biggest upcoming titles.
Miguel is growing up in ‘Coco 2’
Pixar next returned to one of its most beloved worlds. New concept art from Coco 2 revealed Miguel as a teenager, signaling that the sequel will move the character forward rather than simply pick up where the original left off.
Then Benjamin Bratt joined Docter onstage with another surprise: Ernesto de la Cruz is coming back.
According to Pixar, the reemergence of the first film’s villain will lead Miguel on a life-changing return to the Land of the Dead.
The sequel reunites much of the original creative team, including director Lee Unkrich and co-director Adrian Molina, with Mark Nielsen producing.
Coco 2 arrives in theaters November 2029.
And the Coco universe is expanding beyond film.
Disney & Pixar Games and Square Enix announced that Kingdom Hearts IV will include a world inspired by Coco, with the game now targeting a late 2027 release window.
Pixar heads to Hawaii for ‘Ghost Market’
While sequels naturally drew big reactions, Pixar also introduced an intriguing new original film.
Ghost Market takes place on Oʻahu’s North Shore and centers on ʻOno Market, a tiny plate lunch shop hidden away from the living.
Its customers are lost spirits caught between life and death.
Humans have never entered the restaurant, until a fast-talking kid named Kyle accidentally finds his way inside and gets pulled into a supernatural adventure.
Trevor Jimenez and Jesse Andrews direct the film, and Becky Neiman-Cobb produces it.
Ghost Market is scheduled for theatrical release in March 2028.
The premise feels distinctly Pixar: a strange, highly specific world used to explore something much more emotional underneath.
Ghosts eating plate lunch on the North Shore?
We’re listening.
Mark Ruffalo becomes a very complicated cat in ‘Gatto’
Docter closed Pixar’s showcase with a D23-exclusive look at Gatto, the upcoming Venice-set animated adventure from Luca filmmakers Enrico Casarosa and Andrea Warren.
Mark Ruffalo voices Nero, a scrappy black cat navigating the canals and superstitions of Venice while beginning to wonder whether he has lived his nine lives particularly well.
Complicating matters is Rocco, a ruthless feline mob boss voiced by Laurence Fishburne.
Nero owes Rocco a debt, forcing him into circumstances that eventually lead to an unexpected friendship, and perhaps a chance to discover what he is actually supposed to be doing with the lives he has left.
Casarosa directs, with Warren producing. Gatto opens exclusively in theaters March 5, 2027.
Pixar balances nostalgia with new worlds
The slate also offered a pretty clear snapshot of Pixar’s current strategy.
Major returning franchises include Incredibles 3 and Coco 2.
There is recognizable talent driving Gatto.
And then there is Ghost Market, an entirely original story with the kind of oddball premise that once defined Pixar’s willingness to take big creative swings.
That balance – familiar characters alongside strange new worlds – may be exactly what the studio needs as it looks toward the next several years.
And if the idea of Mark Ruffalo as a Venetian cat indebted to Laurence Fishburne’s feline mob boss doesn’t at least make you curious, we’re not sure what will.
The Geek is a working screenwriter, director and screenwriting instructor.
