Characters from Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 3" (L-R) Jessie, Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Lot's-O-Huggin' Bear pose at the UK premiere in Leicester Square
Characters from Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 3" (L-R) Jessie, Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Lot's-O-Huggin' Bear pose at the UK premiere in Leicester Square, London July 18, 2010. Reuters/Stefan Wermuth

"Toy Story 4" is going to release in 2017. Pixar has revealed that the new instalment of the "Toy Story" franchise is going to be a love story.

The announcement for the new instalment has come as a surprise, as it was thought that the third movie completed the trilogy. "Toy Story 4" will pick up where "Toy Story 3" left off, with Andy giving Woody, Buzz and the gang to a little girl. The film would focus on romance between Woody, the cowboy and Bo Peep, the shepherdess. In "Toy Story 2" and 3 hints of romance between the two were given.

There is also a chance that the fans would get to see romance between Buzz Lightyear and Jessie, the cowgirl. "Toy Story 4" is going to have a strong female perspective, according to LA Times.

"A lot of people in the industry view us doing sequels as being for the business of it, but for us it's pure passion," said Pixar's chief creative director John Lasseter to the website, who helmed the first two "Toy Story" films. "We only make sequels when we have a story that's as good as or better than the original."

The idea for "Toy Story 4" reportedly originated at a Lasseter's lunch meeting with Pixar directors and key creative executives Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton and Unkrich. "Toy Story 3" was a huge box office success. It garnered $1billion worldwide. It was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Sound Editing. It won the awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.

Actors Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack and John Morris were the voice-over artists for "Toy Story 3." Pixar has not announced the cast of "Toy Story 4."

Lasseter will be directing the film. He says that directing films is an important aspect of his life, as he gets to work with the young talent who have a lot of fresh ideas. Galyn Susman, who produced the "Toy Story" and "Hawaiian Vacation", will produce "Toy Story 4."