A film based on long running cartoon series The Simpsons is to be released in the US in July 2007, Twentieth Century Fox has confirmed.

News of the release came in a 25 second trailer before screenings of the film Ice Age: The Meltdown. The clip opened with a superhero-sized letter "S" with a voiceover announcing, "Leaping his way onto the silver screen, the greatest hero in American history!" But instead of an image of Superman, as audiences had been led to believe, the action moves to Homer Simpson sitting on a couch in his underwear. "I forgot what I was supposed to say," he says.

Already the longest-running prime time TV series (and into its 17th series), US network Fox commissioned two new seasons last month, quelling possible fan fears that the arrival of a movie might spell the end of the franchise. The release date of the film has been pushed forward from 2008. ®