Universal Pictures is working on a realistic movie based on this great 60s-show with it's marionette-actors and those great model-kits instead of boring computer graphics. Not too much is known about this production yet, but it sounds like it's gonna be really, really lame.

"Set in the year 2065, this is the story of ex-astronaut and USAF Colonel Jeff Tracy (Paxton) and his five sons who form a rescue team called International Rescue (nicknamed "The Thunderbirds") that uses a fleet of vehicles, from rockets to boats, to race into action whenever their unique services are required. Helping the Tracys are Brains (Edwards), a technological genius who invented the amazing rockets used by International Rescue; Jeff's assistant Kyrano and his daughter Tin-Tin; the lovely Lady Penelope (Dahl), and her driver, Parker. In this adventure, Tracy Island is attacked by an evil mastermind, Aristotle Spode, AKA The Hood (Kingsley), who wants to use the International Rescue vehicles to commit acts of crime. The emphasis of the story will be on Alan (14-year-old Corbet), the youngest of the clan at 12, who will have to rescue his father and brothers from Spode's villainous clutches, with the help of two of his friends." -quoted from Yahoo! Movies

The first picture

Directed by Jonathan Frakes and starring Bill Paxton (Jeff Tracy); Ben Kingsley (The Hood); Anthony Edwards (Brains); Sophia Myles (Lady Penelope); Philip Winchester (Scott Tracy); Lex Shrapnel (John Tracy); Dominic Colenso (Virgil Tracy); Ben Torgenson (Gordon Tracy); Ron Cook (Parker).

Expected Release Date U.S. : 23rd July 2004 (Subject to change)

Lady Penelope with her new car

PICS FROM THAT BBC-WORLD EXCLUSIVE 15 sec uncompleted FX shot of THUNDEBIRDS 3 taking off from TRACY ISLAND.

By the way, whatever happened to Matt Stone & Trey Parker's (South Park) R-rated Marionette Action Epic called TEAM AMERICA? Can't wait to see it after reading the announcement.

"Our Cast will be deliberately made of wood, but that will only be taking to the extreme what is evident in many Hollywood movies right now," said Stone. "I hate all these new Hollywood films that are CGI-driven. Trey and I loved that 'Thunderbirds' series because of the artistry of the marionettes. It's amazing that a studio would make a movie out of it and take out the only thing that was good about the series." -quoted from Variety

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