Are Pixar Making Cars 3? Sheriff Seems to Think So.

Well this is sure to inflame the 'Pixar are losing their touch' brigade. A new interview with Michael Wallis, the voice of the Sheriff in the Cars films, has been making waves online, as the author/actor said, with some certainty, that Pixar are currently making Cars 3. Please do note though, nothing has been confirmed and this is entirely, until we're told otherwise, to be treated as a rumour.

In an interview with Route 66 News, Wallis casually dropped in that the studio was working on the automobile threequel, and with none of the "um, yeah, I think they're making it," ambiguity with which Tom Hanks once mentioned Toy Story 4. " After adding that he "didn't particularly care for [Cars 2]," Wallis confidently chimed in that "[with] Cars 3 we're coming back to the road." So, by the sounds of it, production, story-wise, would be pretty far along.

"back to the road," presumably means no more of this guy.

But that's not all, he also spoke about some specific details of the film, saying that it involved Route 99 (a major historical highway through California). So, if this is to be believed, it would seem Pixar are going back to the formula of the first film, rather than the spy motif of the sequel.

Again, it's entirely possible Wallis is mistaken, and that the project he's referring to is a short or - particularly coming after the premiere of Toy Story of Terror! yesterday - a half hour TV special. That said, Cars 3 isn't outside of the realm of possibility. Cars is a merchandise behemoth, and while critics and some fans are very unfond of the franchise, it is a passion project for Pixar top brass John Lasseter, and a cash cow for Disney (DisneyToon's Planes turned a tidy profit off a relatively modest budget) - not to mention that kids love it. Pixar pres. Ed Catmull said, back in June, that the studio would probably release a sequel "every other year," and with Finding Dory coming in 2016 now, that would presumably mean Cars 3 would fall in 2018.

While it's certainly not a film I'm clamouring for, and it's disheartening from the standpoint of trying to defend Pixar (not a phrase one would think of uttering 5 years ago), it's not entirely a bad move. Lee Unkrich's as-of-yet untitled Day of the Dead film sounds extremely exciting, but not the sort of stuff that's going to set the box office on fire; if making sequels like Cars 3 means we get exciting original prospects like Día de los Muertos, then that's not a bad pill to swallow. Also, if Pixar have to make sequels, from a commercial standpoint, I'd much rather this than a completely unnecessary sequel to something like WALL-E or Up. All the same, I'm calling it being a TV special.

So, there you have it. What do you reckon: does this sound possible? Is Wallis mistaken? Would you be interested in seeing Cars 3?

Via The Rotoscopers.