Tom Hanks’ Digital Animated Series to Stream on Yahoo!

LAS VEGAS: Yahoo! is to serve as the exclusive online broadcast home for Tom Hanks’ new animated series Electric City, marking the company’s foray into original scripted programming.

The show is from Playtone, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman’s film and TV production company, and Reliance Entertainment. Electric City, which will debut on Yahoo! this year, is set in a futuristic society. The show was created by and stars Hanks. It will be shown as a multi-part series and Yahoo!, which will complement the program with an immersive and interactive online experience.

"Electric City is a thought-provoking and engaging series and we are thrilled to be partnering with Playtone and Reliance Entertainment to bring Tom Hanks’ vision to the world on Yahoo! for the first time," said Ross Levinsohn, the executive VP for the Americas at Yahoo!. "Electric City is so much more than just an online video series—it is an interactive and immersive experience from one of the world’s biggest stars and premier storytellers."

"Yahoo! has clearly established itself as the go-to destination for big events and breaking news and we are focused on providing the best digital canvas for the world’s greatest storytellers to create, develop and showcase their visions," added Levinsohn. "Electric City is further proof that we want to set the bar in premium online content and be the global home for groundbreaking ventures from the world’s best-known and next-generation artists."

"It was always our intent to have this project live and breathe online and we felt Yahoo! would be the perfect home," commented Playtone’s Gary Goetzman.

"Electric City is the first of its kind, a clutter-breaking, global 360[-degree] digital project. Working with Tom and Playtone has been an amazing experience and this series could not have been possible without Tom’s vision and creativity. We also feel that with its reach and technology, Yahoo! is the best distribution partner for this project," said Amitabh Jhunjhunwala, the vice chairman of the Reliance Group. "Electric City reinforces Reliance’s commitment to invest and innovate in the global entertainment industry. We will continue to create more global and multiplatform digital projects involving top Hollywood talent."