May the force be with you!

The 90-minute premiere episode of the CGI animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars will have a limited release in U.S. cinemas starting August 15th.

Not only will this be the first 3-D animated movie for the highly-successful saga, but this will also be the first Star Wars movie not released through Twentieth Century Fox. Fox released all six Star Wars movies, plus the original microseries The Clone Wars on home video.

But Warner Bros. and Turner Broadcasting will release Star Wars: The Clone Wars this time. The principle reason is that Turner's and W.B.'s subsidiary, The Cartoon Network, managed to snag the rights to the series from creator George Lucas.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars on The Cartoon Network

The new series will premiere this fall on The Cartoon Network, later airing on TNT.

"I felt there were a lot more Star Wars stories left to tell," said George Lucas in the press release for Star Wars: The Clone Wars. "I was eager to start telling some of them through animation and, at the same time, push the art of animation forward."

"Nothing like this has ever been produced for television," said Stuart Snyder, President/COO Turner Animation,Young Adults & Kids Media. "For 30 years, Star Wars has shown that it appeals to a huge breadth of fans. Star Wars: The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network will be appointment television for everyone in the family. We're thrilled to be working with Lucasfilm again and very excited to be playing a role in bringing this remarkable adventure to viewers."


"May The Force Be With You!"