Like many of Disney's other animated movies, Lightyear will be landing on Disney+ following its theatrical run. Although some of Pixar's previous films have been straight to Disney+, largely due to the pandemic and the studio attempting to draw more attention to their streaming service, Lightyear will actually be getting an initial theatrical release.
Lightyear is a spin-off of the popular Toy Story franchise, this time exploring the galactic adventures of the titular space ranger. The film follows Buzz Lightyear (Chris Evans) and his crew as Buzz attempts to return home after being stranded on an alien planet. Interestingly, Lightyear is actually based on the in-universe film Andy from Toy Story saw as a kid, spawning the incredibly popular Buzz Lightyear toy.
Although Disney hasn't officially announced that Lightyear will be coming to Disney+, it is possible that the movie's theatrical exclusivity will be shorter than most live-action windows. The most recent example of this is Encanto, which was released in theaters on November 24, 2021, and was added to the Disney+ library exactly one month later. Other Pixar films, including Luca, Soul, and Turning Red, were actually released straight to Disney+, skipping a theatrical release altogether. Lightyear is part of a high-profile franchise, however, and films are beginning to gradually return to theaters, so Disney may actually follow the pattern established by their recent Marvel Studios releases.
Marvel is one of Disney's biggest properties, meaning that Lightyear may follow a similar pattern to Marvel's releases on Disney+. Starting with Black Widow, every Marvel movie has gone from theaters to Disney+ in around 2-4 months. Black Widow was released on Disney+ after 89 days, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings after 70 days, Eternals after 68 days, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness after just 47 days. Disney most likely expects Lightyear to be a box office hit, so it will probably stay in theaters for a similar time period of 2-4 months. Another date to consider is September 8, 2022 when the studio will celebrate its annual Disney+ Day, making it the perfect potential date for Lightyear's streaming arrival.
Lightyear's high-profile status makes it very different from previous Pixar and Disney animated films released during the pandemic. However, Disney+ has been a major success for the company, so it definitely won't be too long before Lightyear sees a release on the service. It is impossible to perfectly pin down the Disney+ release pattern, as there are likely several deals and theatrical obligations that films have to meet before releasing on the streaming service. Lightyear's box office success may cause its Disney+ release to vary, but it is very likely it will come out sometime in August or September 2022.