Cars 3 was the first feature-length movie directed by Brian Fee.
Fee directed Cars 3, released in 2017, after working as a storyboard artist on earlier Pixar projects. The film follows Lightning McQueen as he faces Jackson Storm, a next-generation racer whose speed and technology threaten the older champion’s place in the sport.
Cars 3 marked a change in directorial leadership for the Cars series. John Lasseter directed Cars, while John Lasseter and Brad Lewis directed Cars 2. Fee therefore became the first director to lead a feature-length Cars film without having directed either of the previous entries.
The film also returns the series to a more focused racing and mentorship story after Cars 2’s international spy adventure. Its themes include aging, professional transition, coaching, and preserving the legacy of earlier champions. Brian Fee later contributed to Pixar’s development work on other projects, but Cars 3 remains his feature directing debut.