Josh Cooley
Cooley in 2024
Born	(1979-05-23)May 23, 1979 (age 46)[1] Berkeley, California, U.S.
Occupations	Film director screenwriter storyboard artist voice actor
Years active	2003–present
Employers	Pixar Animation Studios (2003–2020) Paramount Animation (2020–present)
Awards	Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Toy Story 4 (2019)

Joshua Cooley (born May 23, 1979) is an American filmmaker and storyboard artist. He is best known for directing the animated filmsToy Story 4 (2019) andTransformers One (2024), with the former winning theAcademy Award for Best Animated Feature. He also co-wrote the screenplay for the filmInside Out (2015), which was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Cooley was recruited byJoe Ranft at Pixar, where he started his career as an intern,^[2][3] mostly working as a storyboard artist on films includingThe Incredibles (2004),Cars (2006),Ratatouille (2007),Up (2009), andCars 2 (2011).^[4] In 2009, Cooley wrote and directed a short filmGeorge & A.J. for Pixar andWalt Disney Pictures.^[4]

Cooley worked as a screenwriter and storyboard supervisor on the filmInside Out (2015), which was released to financial success with audiences.^[5] Cooley received an Academy Award nomination forBest Original Screenplay for his work on the film, alongsidePete Docter (the film's director),Ronnie Del Carmen (co-director), andMeg LeFauve.^[6] The same year, he wrote and directed another short film titledRiley's First Date?^[7][6]

Following completion of Cooley's work onInside Out in 2015, he was tapped byJohn Lasseter andAndrew Stanton to co-directToy Story 4. In 2016, Cooley replaced Lasseter as the film's director.^[8]Toy Story 4 was Cooley's directorial debut. Upon release, the film received critical acclaim, and Cooley took home his first Academy Award forBest Animated Feature.^[9] Cooley left Pixar in March 2020.^[10]

In 2024, Cooley directed the animatedTransformers film, titledTransformers One, forParamount Pictures.^[11] The film is set on the Transformers home planet of Cybertron and focuses on the origins ofOptimus Prime andMegatron.^[11]

On May 19, 2020, it was reported that Cooley will write and direct a live-action adaptation of the children's bookMalamander byThomas Taylor forSony Pictures,^[10] marking his first live-action film. In addition, on July 10, 2020, it was announced that Cooley would be the writer and director of the filmLittle Monsters, starringUniversal Monsters characters, forUniversal Pictures.^[12] On June 23, 2021, Cooley was set to write a film based on theDisney Parks attractionTower of Terror, withScarlett Johansson starring and producing the project, after previously working together onTransformers One.^[13]

In June 2025, Cooley entered talks to direct a film adaptation of the children's bookI Eat Poop: A Dung Beetle Story forParamount Animation andMaximum Effort.^[14]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toJosh Cooley.

• Josh Cooley atIMDb

• 1979 births
• Film directors from California
• American male screenwriters
• American male voice actors
• American storyboard artists
• American animated film directors
• Animation screenwriters
• Animators from California
• Annie Award winners
• Living people
• Pixar people
• Directors of Best Animated Feature Academy Award winners

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