Freddie Highmore has been signed for the title role in Imagi Studios' CG-animated motion picture ASTRO BOY, it was announced Thursday by producer Maryann Garger and director David Bowers.
The announcement of the casting of the award-winning actor as the voice of Astro Boy follows the release of THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES, Highmore's latest starring vehicle.
Created by Osamu Tezuka, ASTRO BOY has enjoyed acclaim and success throughout the world, starting with the original animated television series in the 1960s and followed by subsequent versions in the 1980s and in 2003.
Set in futuristic Metro City, ASTRO BOY is about a young robot with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist to replace the son he has lost.
Unable to fulfill the grieving father's expectations, our hero embarks on a journey in search of acceptance, experiencing betrayal and a netherworld of robot gladiators, before he returns to save Metro City and reconcile with the man who had rejected him.
ASTRO BOY will be released worldwide in 2009.
Highmore, 16, has starred in both live action and animated features, including THE GOLDEN COMPASS, AUGUST RUSH, ARTHUR AND THE INVISIBLES and CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY.
