Whether you agree or disagree with the wisdom of creating a sequel to Finding Nemo, the film is happening, and now it has an official title.  Disney-Pixar has announced that the new film will be entitled Finding Dory, and will be released on November 25, 2015.  As the title implies, the new movie will have a lot more of the forgetful fish (Ellen DeGeneres), and according to director Andrew Stanton, “One thing we couldn’t stop thinking about was why she was all alone in the ocean on the day she met Marlin. In Finding Dory, she will be reunited with her loved ones, learning a few things about the meaning of family along the way.”  The new movie will take place one year after the events of the first movie, and will bring back not only Marlin (Albert Brooks) and Nemo, but also the Tank Gang as well as other characters.  The story will also take place partially along the California coastline.

Going back and watching Finding Nemo last year, I fell in love with Dory all over again, and her line, “When I’m with you, I’m home,” makes me tear up every time.  Although Pixar recently went on a streak of sequels and prequels (Toy Story 3, Cars 2, and Monsters University), Finding Dory will be their first sequel after the original features The Good Dinosaur (May 30, 2014) and the Untitled Movie That Takes You Inside the Mind (June 19, 2015).  I also wouldn’t be surprised if Pixar ultimately pushes Finding Dory behind Lee Unkrich‘s Untitled Dia de los Muertos movie, which is currently slated for 2016.  Hit the jump for the press release. [Update: We've updated the article with a video of DeGeneres announcing the film.]

As we stand at what looks like the end of Pixar’s extraordinary run of classics (though hopefully a new streak will start soon), it’s hard to focus on any single work as their best. The steady beat of the Toy Story films set the pace, The Incredibles helped the superhero movie mature, and the stunning triple punch of Ratatouille, WALL*E and Up proved that brilliant stories could be found far from Hollywood’s beaten paths. But if I had to pick one film of theirs as my favorite – one movie that summed up what so many of us love about this extraordinary studio – I’d probably pick Finding Nemo, their fish-out-of-water story that perfectly encapsulates everything we’ve come to expect from them. Hit the jump for my full review of the Finding Nemo Ultimate Collector’s Edition Blu-ray.

Ellen DeGeneres will just keep swimming as she’s set to reprise her voice acting role as the forgetful fish Dory in Andrew Stanton‘s Finding Nemo 2.  We reported last month that Pixar’s highest-grossing film was getting a sequel, although we won’t be seeing it until 2016.  According to THR, “DeGeneres has not been quiet about her desire to see a Nemo sequel come to fruition, making multiple mentions on her popular syndicated talk show.”  DeGeneres is the first piece of casting for Nemo 2, and while the first film has lots of popular characters, I’m wondering if Pixar is trying to make sure they can lock down Albert Brooks to reprise his role as Marlin.  No plot details are known about the sequel, and Victoria Strouse (October Road) is currently working on the script.

The first Finding Nemo has received a 3D post-conversion, and will arrive in theaters on September 14th.

Writer/director Andrew Stanton has been behind some of the very best films in Pixar’s repertoire (and that’s saying something).  He co-wrote Toy Story, Toy Story 2, Toy Story 3, and Monsters Inc., and he wrote and directed the magnificent one-two punch of Finding Nemo and Wall-E.  Stanton made his live-action debut earlier this year with the criminally underseen sci-fi epic John Carter, and now it looks like he’ll be returning to Pixar for his next feature, Finding Nemo 2.  Hit the jump for more.

Steve Carell and comedian David Steinberg will be teaming up to produce a documentary about the history of modern comedy.  According to Deadline, the documentary will “chronicle the evolution of comedy over the past sixty years through the eyes of several generations of comedians.”  Carell and Steinberg are already working on the currently untitled documentary, which will include interviews with such comedians as Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, Lily Tomlin, Don Rickles, Carol Burnett, Jerry Seinfeld, Ellen DeGeneres, Judd Apatow, Robin Williams, Sarah Silverman, Chris Rock, Jane Lynch, and Tina Fey.  The amount of talent involved with the film is definitely impressive and Carell seems to agree by saying, “We’re honored that so many legendary comedic performers have chosen to be part of this.”

The duo plan to target the film for a TV distribution deal and I’m sure that more than one channel will be happy to air the documentary when it’s finished.  This would also mark Carell’s second venture into producing a work for television after yesterday’s announcement that NBC has picked up a comedy series based on Carrell’s early days working as a mail carrier in Littleton, Massachusetts.