Planet 51 (formerly Planet One) is a CG animated film I had under my radar for a long time after being impressed at the stills that was posted on the Ilion Animation Studios site. New Line Cinema must of have the same impression too since the studio recently acquired the $60 million feature from Handmade Films International. The animated feature film bandwagon has just gotten a whole lot crowder, now that New Line has join the race with Disney, Sony, DreamWorks, Fox and Warner Bros in the mix. Considering Shrek writer Joe Stillman on board, combine with stunning visuals, its seems they got a potential winner on their hands.
The story is set on Planet 51, whose inhabitants live in fear of an alien invasion. Their paranoia is realized when astronaut Capt. Charles "Chuck" Baker arrives from Earth. Befriended by a young resident, the astronaut has to avoid capture in order to recover his spaceship and return home.
The sci-fi comedy is still under development while a search for an A-list voice-cast is currently underway. Its schedule for completion in 2008.
Hmm, "writer of SHREK" and "potential winner" in the same sentence. I guess if the topic at hand is cold hard cash, I can accept that. If it's artistic merit - um, no. SHREK was disposable junk. Occasionally funny, when it was new anyway. Now just painful.