“Just keeping swimming. Just keep swimming.”
– Dory from 2003 Disney/Pixar’s “Finding Nemo”
And that is exactly what Dory, Marlin and Nemo will do in the much anticipated 2016 sequel to “Finding Nemo.” Thirteen years after audiences were submerged under water to meet the cast of sea creatures in “Finding Nemo,” Disney/Pixar is throwing fans some bait on a fishing line as to what to expect in the follow-up movie.
Everyone’s favorite Royal Blue tang fish will reunite with her co-stars in “Finding Dory.” The sequel will find the short-term memory loss Dory, voiced by Ellen DeGeneres, back in the big blue world with her clownfish friends Marlin, voiced by Albert Brooks and Nemo as the trio embarks on an adventure to find Dory’s parents.
“Finding Dory” will also reunite the fish-cast with Andrew Stanton who directed “Finding Nemo.” He will share the director’s chair with Angus MacLane who has worked primarily as an animator on such Disney/Pixar blockbusters like “Toy Story 3,” “WALL-E,” “Ratatouille,” “Cars,” and “Up.”
While the film will take place in the ocean, Pixar President Jim Morris has revealed the bulk of the film will follow the absent-minded Dory on a quest to remember her past and find her parents at the Marine Biology Institute in California. Fans will learn Dory was born and raised at the Institute before she was released into the wild. The sequel is expected to pick up a few months after “Finding Nemo” left us with Dory living with Marlin and Nemo on their reef. When Dory accompanies Nemo on a school trip to watch the migration of manta rays, she is inspired to embark on a journey to find her parents.
The Marine Biology Institute, described as a huge rehabilitation complex for marine and aquarium life, opens the door for a new school of fish characters and merchandise. We will meet Dory’s parents Charlie and Jenny, voiced respectively by actor Eugene Levy and actress Diane Keaton. “Modern Family” star Ty Burrell will breathe life into the character of Bailey, a funny beluga whale.
“Finding Dory” is scheduled to swim into theaters on June 17th, 2016.