Cars 3 is the third main installment in Pixar’s Cars franchise and was released in 2017.
The film returns to Lightning McQueen’s racing career after the international spy adventure of Cars 2. Its central conflict is McQueen’s struggle to compete against technologically advanced racers, especially Jackson Storm.
Brian Fee directed Cars 3, making his feature directorial debut after working as a storyboard artist on earlier Pixar productions. The film’s story focuses on mentorship, aging, competition, and the value of sharing experience rather than treating retirement as the only possible ending.
Cars 3 is distinct from Cars 2 and from the franchise’s television shorts. Pixar’s main feature trilogy consists of Cars, released in 2006; Cars 2, released in 2011; and Cars 3, released in 2017. The title is intentionally simple and identifies the film as the numbered third entry.