Astro Boy

Astro Boy is a 2009 animated superhero science fiction comedy adventure film loosely based on the manga series by Osamu Tezuka. Produced by the Hong Kong-based company Imagi Studios, it was directed by David Bowers who co-wrote the screenplay with Timothy Hyde Harris. The film stars Freddie Highmore, Kristen Bell, Nathan Lane, Eugene Levy, Matt Lucas, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Charlize Theron, and Nicolas Cage. Set in the 22nd century in Metro City—a floating futuristic city-state where robots serve humankind—Dr. Tenma (Cage) creates Astro (Highmore), a teenage robot implanted with the likeness and memories of his son after the latter is killed in an accident. After Tenma disowns his creation, Astro inadvertently ends up on Earth's dirty surface, where he finds companionship with the residents. Meanwhile, Stone (Sutherland), the president of Metro City who is running for re-election, seeks Astro's unique power source to fuel his defense robot. Astro Boy was first released in Hong Kong on October 8, 2009, and in the United States on October 23. It received generally mixed reviews from film critics and was a financial failure, earning $42 million worldwide against its $65 million budget. As a result of the film's bad performance, Imagi Studios was shut down on February 5, 2010.