‘Cars’ returns to theaters for its 20th anniversary

Life is a highway, I’m gonna ride it all the way to the movie theater.

Disney and Pixar are rereleasing Cars in theaters to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Audiences should get their motors running to watch the film in its original format starting on Sept. 4.

This theatrical rerelease also happens to coincide with Cars Lightning McQueen Day, which is observed on Sept. 5, in honor of the character’s race car number, 95.

There are many other collaborations and activations set to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the animated film.

A Cars integration is planned for Route 66’s centennial anniversary, with screenings of the film set at the historic Tee-Pee Drive-In in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, and Tulsa Circle Cinema in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Additionally, a Cars-wrapped Mercedes Safety Car will appear alongside a life-size Lightning McQueen at the Formula 1 Gran Premio D’Italia 2026. There will also be a Porsche “Sally Special” vehicle touring the U.S., with stops set in Atlanta; Costa Mesa, California; Monterey, California; Los Angeles; and New York.

Cars originally raced into theaters in 2006. It follows “a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, who discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line, when he finds himself unexpectedly detoured in the sleepy Route 66 town of Radiator Springs,” according to an official description.

Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Larry the Cable Guy and Bonnie Hunt lent their voices to the film, which was directed by John Lasseter.