It was only a few months ago that Pixar released Turning Red, but in June, the studio will return with Lightyear, the first Pixar film to be released solely in theaters since Onward’s brief run. If you’d prefer to look further into the future, Lightyear, step aside for the next Pixar film has been revealed. Elemental is the title of the upcoming Pixar film, and the first look has been released.
Ember and Wade, a fiery young woman and a go-with-the-flow guy, wind up learning how much they have in common in Pixar’s 27th feature picture, which is set in a metropolis where fire, water, land, and air residents live together. In the concept image below, you can see how Elemental’s leading couple appears:
Peter Sohn, who previously directed The Good Dinosaur and the Partly Cloudy short, is directing Elemental, while Denise Ream, who also worked on The Good Dinosaur and Cars 2, is producing. Sohn’s childhood in New York influenced the story of Elemental, as the filmmaker explained in an official statement:
“My parents emigrated from Korea in the early 1970s and built a bustling grocery store in the Bronx. We were among many families who ventured to a new land with hopes and dreams—all of us mixing into one big salad bowl of cultures, languages and beautiful little neighborhoods. That’s what led me to Elemental. Our story is based on the classic elements—fire, water, land and air. Some elements mix with each other, and some don’t. What if these elements were alive”?
So, after Lightyear, the film starring the sci-fi action hero that inspired the Toy Story toys’ Buzz Lightyear, we’ll be returning to original territory with Elemental. The story sounds like a mix of Inside Out and Onward, based on the brief idea and Peter Sohn’s comments. We’ll have to wait to see what kind of adventure Ember and Wade embark on to find their commonalities, as well as who will voice them and the other characters, but this story clearly means a lot to Peter Sohn. Pixar’s only feature-length production in 2023 will be Elemental, with 2024 returning to two films.