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D23 Expo Round-Up: 'The Good Dinosaur' Story Details & Casting News + New 'MU' Short

Disney Monsters University News Party Central Round-Ups The Good Dinosaur

Pixar kicked off D23 with a bang this morning, giving in-depths glimpses at three of the studio’s upcoming films: The Good Dinosaur, Inside Out, and Finding Dory

The biggest chunk of the panel was spent on The Good Dinosaur, the next film on Pixar’s schedule. Producer Denise Ream took the stage to discuss more about the movie’s story, which focuses on an Apatosaurus named Arlo (Lucas Neff). His parents are John Lithgow and Frances McDormand, and his siblings Forrest, Cliff, and Ivy are played by Bill Hader, Neil Patrick Harris, and Judy Greer, respectively.

The studio also screened a handful of clips to set the stage for the story. The first reiterated what we already know: 65 million years ago, an asteroid is hurtling towards Earth. However, it narrowly misses the planet as the dinosaurs watch from the surface. Their lives go on, and the course of history is forever changed.

Years later, the dinosaurs have developed an agrarian society. A wordless clip showed various dinosaurs tending to the fields, using their physical traits to their advantage on the farm. The dinosaurs struggle to deal with pests that destroy their crops, but Arlo takes a liking to them.

In a third piece of footage, it’s revealed that these pests are in fact armored humans, incapable of speech. Arlo runs into a fearless young boy named Spot, but the two don’t get off on the right foot together. Eventually, circumstances force Arlo and Spot to go on some sort of quest.

It sounds like a very unique concept for the studio, and there’s a ton of potential for an interesting and heartfelt story. We should hear (and hopefully see) more about the film tomorrow after D23’s The Art of The Good Dinosaur panel.

Additionally, Pixar confirmed that a new short in the Monsters University universe titled Party Central will play before The Good Dinosaur! The short was screened at the panel, and early reactions are extremely positive. Look forward to more on that soon.

The Good Dinosaur and Party Central are set to arrive on May 30 next year. Check back shortly for summaries of Inside Out and Finding Dory news from the panel.

(Thanks to The Pixar Times and ComingSoon.net for their coverage of the event)

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Last modified: August 9, 2013