Summary
WhileInside Out 3is not officially confirmed, Pixar is workshopping some ideas for the threequel.Inside Out 2is still in theaters and proved to be a dominating force at the box office this summer, having earned over $1.6 billion already and is poised to continue earning for Disney once it comes to Disney+. Pixar is already working on the four-episodeDream Productionsspin-off, butInside Out 3’s confirmationcontinues to be a subject of anticipation.
While not wholly admitting that the threequel will be entering production, Pixar’s Chief Creative Officer, Pete Docter, has been considering the next steps. In an interview withFandangoafter D23, Docter admitted thatthey are still planning where the franchise might go inthe next movie. There are many concepts that they are still waiting to introduce, but the movie has not officially begun the production phase. Check out Docter’s full quote:
We’re in the same place we were after [Inside Out]. We’re just like, “Okay, well if we were going to do something, what would it be?” And we’re kind of just thinking of ideas. Who knows? I would love for it to feel as though out of this vast world we only saw like three percent and the rest of it is still out there. So, there’s a lot to explore, a lot of things that we played with in the first movie or the second movie that didn’t work for story reasons — [they] didn’t fit thematically — so we have a lot to play with.
When Will Inside Out 3 Be Released?
Inside Out 3 Is Years Away
While Docter did confirm that Pixar is considering ideas for the threequel, it is still not an official confirmation about production. Moreover, it has not been greenlit either, leaving the franchise in limbo until the announcement. Considering thatInside Out 2dominated the box office for weeks,there will likely be a follow-up, but there is no word onwhich emotions will join theInside Outuniverseor which stage of Riley’s life will be explored.
Because Docter directly compared the current stage of development to the phase they entered after the original’s release, there is no better place to look for a potential release date. The original entered theaters on August 13, 2025, while the sequel was released on June 29, 2025. If Pixar follows a similar schedule,the next movie could reach theaters in June 2033.Dream Productionswould offer a temporary reprieve from the long wait, but an official sequel could be another nine years away.
Dream Productions: Everything You Need To Know
After two blockbuster films, the Inside Out franchise expanded with a brand-new imaginative TV series entitled Dream Productions.
There isa chance thatInside Out 3could earn more attention during its development. Pixar has been prioritizing sequels, hoping to balance new content with preexisting IPs. With this franchise’s immense success, resources could be diverted from new properties to support its production. There were 12 theatrical releases between the first two movies, includingOnward,Lightyear, andElemental. Diverting resources from just one future release could decrease the long wait. If Pixar chooses instead to retain the same amount of resources, there will be many years before a follow-up.
Inside Out
TheInside Outfranchise explores the inner workings of a young girl named Riley Anderson, focusing on her five primary emotions—Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust—that personify her thoughts and actions. Created by Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen, the franchise is praised for its innovative portrayal of emotions and mental processes. It began with the 2015 filmInside Out, which became a critical and commercial success, leading to sequels, a short film, video games, and theme park attractions.
