Walt Disney Pictures has decided to shut down production on the Untitled Henry Selick 3D stop-motion project, which was previously set for release in the States on October 4, 2013. The studio notified the 150 employees at Shademaker Productions in San Francisco earlier today.
Back in April 2010 filmmaker Henry Selick (Coraline) signed a deal to make stop-motion features for Walt Disney Pictures and Disney Pixar. This would have been the first movie to come out of that deal. Insiders claim that the movie was behind in production, from both a creative and scheduling perspective. Since it would likely not make its proposed release date, Disney pulled the plug altogether. Production started last summer, although they still have not hired any voice actors.
The filmmaker is now free to shop this project around to other studios. Since Disney never released any promotional materials, the chances are greater that this stop-motion flick can find a new home. The move will reportedly not affect the status of Disney’s The Graveyard Book, an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel that Henry Selick is attached to direct. (Source: Variety)