Tempe, ARIZ. � April 15, 2005 - Aardman has selected McFarlane Toys as the master toy partner for the upcoming family feature film Wallace and Gromit � The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, coming to theatres in October 2005.

McFarlane Toys will launch a limited line of toys in fall 2005, with the full product line hitting retail shelves in 2006. Under the direction of Todd McFarlane, McFarlane Toys will capture the richness and spirit of Wallace and Gromit � The Curse of the Were-Rabbit characters through its magic of sculpting and attention to detail with a new line of action figures, 3-inch figure playsets and plush bean dolls.

"As a fan of Wallace and Gromit for years now, I'm happy to see these great characters get introduced to mainstream America," said McFarlane Toys founder Todd McFarlane. "Nick Park's creations will make fantastic toys and this will be a very fun time for us to be involved with Wallace and Gromit."

"The choice of McFarlane as partner was an obvious one as they have synergistic values of innovation, imagination and attention to detail - all factors that play a key role in the success of Wallace & Gromit," said Sean Clarke, Head of Marketing & Licensing at Aardman. "I am certain this will be reflected in a range of toys and gifts that truly interpret the spirit of The Curse of the Were-Rabbit."

The film stars cheese-loving Wallace and his ever-faithful dog Gromit from Aardman's Oscar-winning clay-animated "Wallace & Gromit" shorts, which have become part of British popular culture. This all-new comedy adventure marks their full-length feature film debut. Ever since the much-loved comedy duo of the ever-optimistic inventor and his faithful dog was introduced in their first award-winning film short in 1989, they have endeared themselves to both children and adult fans.

Wallace and Gromit � The Curse of the Were-Rabbit tells the tale of Wallace and Gromit's neighborhood and our two enterprising chums are cashing in with their humane pest-control outfit, "Anti-Pesto." With only days to go before the annual Giant Vegetable Competition, business is booming, but Wallace & Gromit are finding out that running a "humane" pest control outfit has its drawbacks as their West Wallaby Street home fills to the brim with captive rabbits.

Suddenly, a huge, mysterious, veg-ravaging "beast" begins attacking the town's sacred vegetable plots at night and the competition hostess, Lady Tottington, commissions Anti-Pesto to catch it and save the day. Lying in wait, however, is Lady Tottington's snobby suitor, Victor Quartermaine, who'd rather shoot the beast and secure the position of local hero�not to mention Lady Tottingon's hand in marriage. With the fate of the competition in the balance, Lady Tottington is eventually forced to allow Victor to hunt down the vegetable-chomping marauder. Little does she know that Victor's real intent could have dire consequences for her�and our two heroes.

Wallace and Gromit � The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is a DreamWorks Animation SKG (Shrek, Shark Tale) and Aardman (Chicken Run) production, written by Nick Park, and directed by Park and Steve Box. Executive producer is Jeffrey Katzenberg, and is produced by Peter Lord, Park and David Sproxton.

McFarlane Toys

Grammy- and Emmy-winning Producer/Director Todd McFarlane, best known as the creator of Spawn and the founder of spawn.com, is the creative force behind McFarlane Toys. The international award-winning company is one of America's top action figure manufacturers with several successful movie-licensing tie-ins, including Shrek (DreamWorks Animation SKG), "The Simpsons" (20th Century Fox), and the upcoming Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (Warner Brothers). The company also makes official league-licensed figures for baseball, football, basketball and hockey within its Sports Picks� line, as well as recently debuting the Legends lines in baseball and hockey with football and basketball premiering in 2005. McFarlane Toys has replicated some of rock music's greatest icons including Elvis Presley, The Beatles and Motley Crue. Check out www.spawn.com for more information.

DreamWorks Animation SKG

DreamWorks Animation SKG (NYSE: DWA) is principally devoted to developing and producing computer-animated, or CG-animated feature films as well as consumer products to support the release of its films.

Aardman Features

Aardman Features is a separate company set up to produce feature films for Worldwide theatrical distribution. Nick Park joined Aardman in 1986 and is now director of the company with cofounders Peter Lord and David Sproxton.