Will There Be a Cars 4? What Disney Has Officially Said (2026)

As of October 20, 2026, Disney and Pixar have not announced Cars 4. The Walt Disney Company’s own recap of the D23 2026 showcase, held August 14, 2026, lists four Pixar titles (Incredibles 3, Coco 2, Ghost Market and Gatto) and no Cars film. This guide separates what is officially confirmed about the Cars franchise from what is only talk, and shows where a real announcement would appear first.

Production Status

Status check: October 20, 2026. A Cars 4 has no announced title, director, cast, story or release date. Pixar’s feature slate and the Cars projects that do exist are below, each tied to the Disney page it comes from, so you can see what is a fact and what is a rumor.

Current Developments

The newest official Cars news is not a film. On August 13, 2026, Disney and Formula 1 announced that Disney and Pixar’s Cars joins their “Fuel the Magic” collaboration, which was extended through 2028. Lightning McQueen arrives at the Italian Grand Prix weekend in Monza “in an all-new look”, and a Disney and Pixar Cars Collection with Formula 1, including die-cast vehicles from Mattel, went on sale at DisneyStore.com on August 14, 2026. You can read the announcement on The Walt Disney Company newsroom.

That news shows the brand is active in merchandise and live events. It does not say a fourth film is in production, and Disney’s wording does not suggest one. Treat it as a licensing and fan-experience story until Disney says otherwise.

Studio Announcements

Studio announcements for Pixar films come through a small set of official channels: The Walt Disney Company newsroom, Pixar’s own pages, the D23 events and the Disney+ press site. If Cars 4 is ever greenlit, it will appear on those pages with a title and a date. Fan sites, social posts and video channels can repeat or invent claims, but they cannot confirm a film.

What Disney Announced at D23 2026

D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event took place in Anaheim, California, in August 2026. The Disney Entertainment Showcase at the Honda Center on August 14, 2026 was the main stage for film news. Pixar Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter led the Pixar portion, and the company’s published recap, Disney Sets the Stage for What’s Next in Entertainment, names what was shown.

Pixar title	What Disney said	Date given
Incredibles 3	First look shown; directed by Peter Sohn	In theaters June 16, 2028
Coco 2	Concept art of a teenage Miguel; Lee Unkrich directs and Adrian Molina co-directs	In theaters November 2029
Ghost Market	New original film in development; clip shown	Theaters March 2028
Gatto	Exclusive look at the Venice cat adventure from the team behind Luca	Theaters March 5, 2027
Cars 4	Not mentioned in the recap	No date announced

Before the event, online chatter suggested Cars 4 might be revealed at D23. That did not happen in the company’s own account of the Pixar presentation. A reveal could still come at another event or through a press release, but nothing on the Disney pages checked on October 20, 2026 says so.

One detail causes confusion. June 16, 2028 is the release date Disney gives for Incredibles 3. If you see a Cars 4 page quoting that same date, it has mixed the two films up. The same recap also confirms that Pixar released Hoppers and Toy Story 5 this year, which shows how full the studio’s current schedule already is.

Official Cars Projects So Far

Here is every Cars project that Disney’s own pages list, in order. This is the real record of the franchise, and it is short enough to check yourself.

Project	Date	Key official facts
Cars	June 9, 2006	Directed by Joe Ranft and John Lasseter; produced by Darla K. Anderson; rated G
Cars 2	June 24, 2011	Directed by John Lasseter and Brad Lewis; the World Grand Prix and a spy story; rated G
Cars 3	June 16, 2017	Directed by Brian Fee; produced by Kevin Reher; introduces Jackson Storm and Cruz Ramirez; rated G
Cars on the Road	Sept. 8, 2022	Nine-episode Disney+ series directed by Steve Purcell, Bobby Podesta and Brian Fee; produced by Marc Sondheimer
Cars Collection with Formula 1	Announced Aug. 13, 2026	Merchandise and fan experience, including Mattel die-cast vehicles

Sources for the table are the Disney Movies pages for each film, the Disney and Pixar announcement of Cars on the Road dated August 1, 2022, and the August 2026 Formula 1 release above. Release dates are the ones printed on those pages.

Release Date

There is no Cars 4 release date. Disney has never given one, and a date can only be official when it appears on a Disney or Pixar page. Be careful with any site that names a month or year, because the Disney pages checked on October 20, 2026 do not include one.

For context, the three Cars features came out on June 9, 2006, June 24, 2011 and June 16, 2017. That is a pattern in the past, not a promise. Guessing a future date from it would be speculation, so this page does not do that. If you want a longer look at the date question, see our Cars 4 release date page, and for the franchise background see is Cars 4 real.

Cast And Crew

No cast or crew has been announced for a Cars 4. What exists is the credit list of the films and the series. Disney’s Cars 3 page lists Owen Wilson, Cristela Alonzo, Armie Hammer, Larry the Cable Guy, Bonnie Hunt, Cheech Marin, Michael Wallis and Paul Dooley, with Owen Wilson voicing Lightning McQueen. Cars on the Road credits Owen Wilson and Larry the Cable Guy (Mater) as the leads.

Cars 3 was directed by Brian Fee, who also directed episodes 3, 4 and 7 of Cars on the Road. Steve Purcell directed episodes 1, 2 and 8, and Bobby Podesta directed episodes 5, 6 and 9. Those credits show who has worked on the franchise recently, but they say nothing about a future film. For the full voice list across the films, see who is the voice of Cars.

What Cars 3 Left Open

Disney’s synopsis of Cars 3 sets up a rivalry and a hand-off. Lightning McQueen is pushed out of racing by a new generation of fast racers led by Jackson Storm, and he gets help from young racing technician Cruz Ramirez. What happens to those characters next is not an official topic yet. If you want the rivalry in detail, our Lightning McQueen vs Jackson Storm breakdown covers the film, and what car is Jackson Storm covers his design.

Fan theories about retirement storylines, a world tour or new characters are only theories. They are fun to discuss, but none comes from Pixar, so none is treated as news here.

How to Tell a Real Announcement From a Rumor

Release-date pages for unannounced films are common, and many look convincing. A quick check keeps you from sharing something false.

• Find the primary page. A real announcement links to a Disney, Pixar, D23 or Disney+ page. A screenshot or a “sources say” line is not enough.
• Check the title and the date together. Official releases give both, plus a director and a studio. A claim with a date and nothing else is a warning sign.
• Match the date to the film. June 16, 2028 belongs to Incredibles 3 in Disney’s D23 recap, so it cannot also be a Cars 4 date.
• Look at the publish date. Entertainment news changes quickly. A page last updated months ago may already be wrong.

Using that checklist on this topic gives a clear result: the only Cars news in Disney’s newsroom in 2026 is the Formula 1 collection. It is a story about racing fans and collectibles, not a sequel.

Cars Merchandise and Cars Land

While the film question stays open, the franchise remains easy to enjoy in other ways. The Disneyland Resort page for Cars Land, checked on October 19, 2026, lists three rides and a character meet-and-greet in Disney California Adventure Park.

• Radiator Springs Racers: height requirement 40 inches (102 cm) or taller.
• Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters: height requirement 32 inches (81 cm) or taller.
• Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree: height requirement 32 inches (81 cm) or taller.
• Meet the Residents of Radiator Springs, where Lightning McQueen and Mater meet guests.

The same page lists Flo’s V8, Cozy Cone Motel and Fillmore’s Taste-In for food, and shops such as Ramone’s House of Body Art and Sarge’s Surplus Hut for merchandise. Operating details change, so check the official Disneyland page before a visit.

For collectors, the newest official line is the Cars and Formula 1 collection with Mattel die-cast vehicles, which is why the product pick near the top is the Formula 1 multipack. Compare any listing against the scale and the pieces named on the Amazon page before you buy, and check that the item is the one you want, because many Cars die-cast cars look alike.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Cars 4 confirmed?

No. As of October 20, 2026, Disney and Pixar have not announced a Cars 4. The Walt Disney Company recap of the Pixar portion of its August 14, 2026 D23 showcase covers Incredibles 3, Coco 2, Ghost Market and Gatto, and does not mention a Cars film.

Will there be a Cars 4 movie?

There is no official answer yet. Disney has not announced a title, director, cast, story or release date for a fourth Cars film, so any page that gives those details is not quoting Disney or Pixar.

When is Cars 4 coming out?

No release date exists because no Cars 4 has been announced. The date June 16, 2028 appears in Disney’s D23 recap, but it belongs to Incredibles 3, not to a Cars film.

Is Cars 4 cancelled or delayed?

Neither has been announced. A film can only be delayed after it has been dated, and Cars 4 has never been dated. Disney has also not said that the Cars movies are finished.

Will Lightning McQueen be in Cars 4?

Nothing official can be said about the cast of a film that has not been announced. Lightning McQueen is the lead of all three Cars films and of the Disney+ series Cars on the Road, and Disney used him in its August 2026 Formula 1 announcement.

Is there going to be a new Cars movie?

No new Cars movie has been announced. The newest official Cars news in Disney’s own newsroom is the Disney and Pixar Cars Collection with Formula 1, a merchandise and fan-experience announcement made on August 13, 2026.

Is Cars 3 the last Cars movie?

Cars 3, released June 16, 2017, is the most recent Cars feature film. Disney has not described it as the final film, and it has not announced a fourth one either.

Will Owen Wilson or Jackson Storm return in Cars 4?

There is no confirmed casting because there is no announced film. Owen Wilson voices Lightning McQueen in the Disney film listings and in Cars on the Road; Jackson Storm is the rival introduced in Cars 3.

Conclusion

The honest answer to “will there be a Cars 4” is that no one outside Disney and Pixar knows, and Disney has not said. As of October 20, 2026, the official record shows three films, one Disney+ series, Cars Land, and a new Formula 1 collection, but no fourth film.

Bookmark the Walt Disney Company newsroom and the D23 pages if you want to be first to see a real announcement. This page will change if Disney or Pixar confirms a film.

What This Guide Does Not Cover

This guide does not cover box office results, plot predictions or fan theories. For those, use the reviews and franchise pages linked above.