Planes is an upcoming spin-off of the 2006 animated film Cars and the 2011 animated sequel Cars 2, and the first film in the Planes trilogy. However, Pixar Animation Studios, the production team for Cars, will not be producing the film. Instead, it will be produced by DisneyToon Studios. It was initially set to be released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray in Fall 2013, but it will instead have a theatrical release by Walt Disney Pictures on August 9, 2013

Despite the fact that Pixar isn't producing the film, John Lasseter, being chief creative officer of both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, will be one of the producers.

Lasseter had this to say about the film:

We had such a great time exploring the world of Cars over the course of two films, so it seemed only natural for us to see where our imaginations would take us in a film where planes were the main characters. By expanding the Cars world, Planes gave us a whole new set of fun-filled situations and a great opportunity to introduce some fantastic new characters. The team at DisneyToon Studios has done such an amazing job creating a heartfelt story filled with great comedy, adventure, and emotion. I know audiences are going to love taking off into the wild blue yonder with these daredevil characters, as they experience a whole new kind of animated adventure