Toy Story 4 has a new writer! Pixar has tapped Stephany Folsom to pen the next instalment of the franchise that put them on the map. She will now be tasked with bringing the adventures of Woody and Buzz to life for the upcoming sequel for the company’s most popular property.
Toy Story 4 will be Folsom’s first major credit. In 2013 she made the Black List for her original screenplay 1969: A Space Odyssey, or How Kubrick Learned to Stop Worrying and Land on the Moon. She was also brought on late to do some work on Thor: Ragnarok although it’s not clear what exactly her role was. She recently she had a little tiff with Marvel that made news after she wasn’t given a “Story by” credit on the film. It seems that is in the rearview mirror for her, now that she is responsible for the future story of Disney Pixar’s most popular franchise.
Originally the film was going to be written by Rashida Jones and her writing partner Will McCormack, but last year she parted ways with the company. Reports claimed that Jones left the project early on after an unwanted advance from Pixar head John Lasseter.
Lasseter recently took a leave of absence following claims of sexual harassment and misconduct, but Jones issued a statement to The New York Times, saying, “We did not leave Pixar because of unwanted advances.” She continued, “We parted ways because of creative and, more importantly, philosophical differences.”
With the last sequel topping over $1 billion in global box office this film has a lot to live up to. The sequel is dated for release June 21, 2019, although with Lasseter leaving and a new writer just coming on board you can expect there ay be a delay for the release.