The logo for Disney Pixar ’s Onward. Image : Disney

Way back at last year’s D23 Expo, Pixar announced that its next film after Toy Story 4 would be “suburban fantasy adventure” with a personal touch. Well, now that movie has a title. It’s called Onward, and the voice cast is nothing short of heroic.


Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, and Octavia Spencer are the first four names announced for Pixar’s Onward, which is now officially described as follows:

Set in a suburban fantasy world, Disney•Pixar’s “Onward” introduces two teenage elf brothers who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there. “At Pixar we try to create stories that come from some kind of personal truth,” said [director Dan] Scanlon. “This film was inspired by my own relationship with my brother.”


Pratt and Holland, best known for their roles as Star Lord and Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, play the brothers, of course. And while we don’t know who Louis-Dreyfuss and Spencer are voicing, they’re obviously two of the most decorated and talented actors working today.

Back when this film was first announced, Scanlon (who directed Monsters University) explained a bit more about it. Basically, he never knew his own father, and only knew what he looked like through home movies. But then, one day, he found an audio tape of him saying the words “Hi” and “Bye,” and his imagination was ignited. Onward jumps off from there, with two brothers who have the same thing happen to them. Except, this time, they are in a world that used to be magical, but isn’t anymore. “Over the years, it kind of went away as machines were invented to take its place,” we wrote last year. “There aren’t any humans; instead, the characters are elves, trolls, and sprites, and unicorns are everywhere. (They’re like rodents.) Mushroom houses line the streets, but they have satellite dishes on top and minivans in the driveways. It’s described as both modern and familiar, but also fantastic.”

Sounds like a great setting for an emotional story featuring actors who can really bring it all together.

Onward opens March 6, 2020.

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