Tom Hanks has signed on to voice a character in the animated adventure “The Ant Bully�, a new CGI film from Warner Bros. Pictures, DNA Productions, and Playtone Productions. The film will be released on August 4, 2006, in both IMAX 3D and conventional 2D formats.

The film will be directed by John A Davis, who also worked for the 2001 box office hit ‘Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius’.

The Ant Bully is based on the John Nickle’s book, which tells the story of a naughty boy, Lucas Nickle, who floods an ant colony with his water-gun, and is magically shrunken down to insect size and sentenced to hard labor in the ruins. Before returning to half-pint stature, he comes to appreciate the selfless nature of the ants and learns a valuable lesson about tolerance and empathy.

Nicolas Cage, Julia Roberts, Paul Giamatti, Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin and Kahn himself, Ricardo Montalban, Cheri Oteri, Alan Cumming, Regina King and newcomer Zach Tyler Eisen are also voicing characters. Zach Tyler Eisen will voice the miscreant Lucas.

“The last IMAX 3D film we did with Warner Bros. Pictures and Tom Hanks grossed an average of $550,000 per screen, so we’re obviously very optimistic about the potential ‘The Ant Bully’ holds for the IMAX theatre network,” say IMAX Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler.

“‘The Ant Bully,’ a film for the entire family, with outstanding CG animation, is perfectly suited for IMAX 3D,” adds Dan Fellman, President of Domestic Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures. “We look forward to offering audiences the experience of The Ant Bully on August 4, 2006.”

Warner Bros. and IMAX have previously teamed up to release “The Polar Express: An IMAX 3D Experience” and “NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience.”

“The Ant Bully is based on a beloved book which teaches kids important life lessons in an entertaining way. We believe this film is well suited for both commercial and institutional theaters and looks incredible in IMAX 3D”, declared Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment.