It won't reach theaters for over a year, but DreamWorks is already working on building a buzz for its next animated offering, Monsters vs. Aliens.

The studio unveiled a still from the 3-D feature -- and announced the names of the stars lending their voices to its characters -- in a press release yesterday. The "monstrously talented lineup" behind the Rob Letterman-directed feature, debuting March 27, 2009, includes:

Oscar® winner Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line, Rendition) as Susan Murphy, a.k.a. Ginormica; Golden Globe winner Hugh Laurie (TV's "House," Stuart Little) as Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D.; Will Arnett (TV's "Arrested Development," Blades of Glory) as The Missing Link; Seth Rogen (Knocked Up, Superbad) as B.O.B.; Rainn Wilson (Juno, TV's "The Office") as Gallaxhar; Emmy winner Stephen Colbert (TV's "The Colbert Report," Bewitched) as The President of the United States; Golden Globe winner Kiefer Sutherland (TV's "24," Phone Booth) as General W.R. Monger; and Paul Rudd (Knocked Up, Night at the Museum) as Susan's boyfriend, Derek.



The studio's announcement heralds the arrival of Ultimate 3-D, DreamWorks' "proprietary production process of authoring its animated films in 3-D from start to finish." All this technical wizardry will be employed in service of the following plot:

When California girl Susan Murphy is unexpectedly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk, she mysteriously grows to 49-feet-11-inches tall and is instantly labeled a "monster" named Ginormica. The military jumps into action, and she is captured and held in a secret government compound. The world learns that the military has been quietly rounding up other monsters over the years. This ragtag group consists of the brilliant but insect-headed Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D.; the macho half-ape, half-fish The Missing Link; the gelatinous and indestructible B.O.B.; and the 350-foot grub called Insectosaurus. Their confinement time is cut short however, when a mysterious alien robot lands on Earth and begins storming the country. As a last resort, under the guidance of General W.R. Monger (on a desperate order from The President), the motley crew of Monsters is called into action to combat the aliens and save the world from imminent destruction.