New CG Animated Thomas Movie

NEW YORK/LONDON: HIT Entertainment has unveiled the newest Thomas & Friends CG animated feature-length movie, Misty Island Rescue, which is set for release on DVD from Lionsgate.

The hour-long movie sees Thomas the Tank Engine leaving the Island of Sodor for the first time. He heads to Misty Island, which is full of new colorful characters and mysterious destinations. The DVD will be released in the U.S. in September, the U.K. in October and across a number of other international territories, including Australia, Germany, Benelux and Spain, by the end of 2010.

Misty Island Rescue is also slated to screen at some 160 theaters across the U.S. through Screenvision in July. A theatrical release in 65 Vue Cinemas across the U.K. is planned over the weekend of October 2. In addition, at Day Out With Thomas events in North America in 2010, all visitors will receive a mini viewfinder that includes a preview of Misty Island Rescue.

To further support the feature, Thomas & Friends licensees worldwide, including Fisher-Price, Random House, Egmont, Mega Bloks and Learning Curve, will create more than 75 tie-in products, including books, games, engines, playsets and apparel based on Misty Island Rescue. Misty Island Rescue will also be supported with a microsite on the all-new Thomas & Friends website at thomasandfriends.com and will be promoted on Thomas’ newly launched official Facebook fan page.

“As we mark Thomas & Friends’ 65th Anniversary, we are very excited to introduce Thomas’ greatest adventure to date, and unveil an impressive array of tie-in products across all key categories,” said Rick Glankler, the senior VP of global brand management at HIT Entertainment. “Thomas is the undisputed number one engine around the world, and we know that Thomas fans will be enthralled by this heroic rescue story.”