Disney’s Cars spin-off, Planes, will get a theatrical release in 2013

While the Pixar CARS movies may not be the best films from the studio, they are huge marketing behemoths. My house is crammed full of every imaginable kind of Lightning McQueen toy. With CARS 2 ending up as the lowest grossing Pixar film to date, it was no surprise that the long in development spin-off PLANES would be a direct to home media release.

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Disney has changed their mind and will instead release PLANES theatrically on August 9, 2013. The movie already had a teaser on the CARS 2 Blu-ray featuring the voice of Jon Cryer as Dusty the prop plane. Cryer is now no longer involved in the film.

PLANES was produced by DisneyToon Studios, which typically handles their direct to home media releases, and is not associated with Walt Disney Animation or Pixar. John Lasseter does oversee all aspects of Disney animation and CARS is his baby, so I would find it hard to believe he does not have some sort of sign off on the project.

Disney has had a good deal of success in animation recently with WRECK-IT RALPH, TANGLED, WINNIE THE POOH and the upcoming FROZEN. And just remember that the last Pixar related sequel that got bumped up from home video to movie theaters was a little movie called TOY STORY 2.