Zemeckis wants McCartney, Starr for 'Yellow Submarine' remake

In September, Walt Disney Studios and The Beatles Apple Corps Ltd. announced a deal to remake The Beatles' 1968 animated classic Yellow Submarine with director Robert Zemeckis. Now, as MTV News reported November 4, Zemeckis has indicated that he hopes to enlist Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr in the project.

The Yellow Submarine remake will be created by Disney's ImageMovers Digital, the performance-capture animation studio that previously worked with Zemeckis's team on Polar Bear Express, Beowulf, and, most recently, A Christmas Carol. For Yellow Submarine, the director hopes to employ the same 3D-animation style used in those films.

Zemeckis, who is also writing the script for the film, will incorporate the 16 Beatles songs and recordings from the original motion picture, including "All Together Now," "All You Need Is Love," "Eleanor Rigby," "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and "With A Little Help From My Friends."

In an interview with MTV News, Zemeckis indicated that Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr have been approached to participate in the film, although he did not say in what capacity. In the original film, The Beatles themselves do not supply the voices for their animated counterparts, but they do appear in the closing scene of the film.

Yellow Submarine is expected to be released in the summer of 2012 to coincide with the Summer Olympic games in London, England, although an official release date has not been announced.

The Yellow Submarine remake is the latest addition to a wave of resurgence for Beatlemania. On September 9, the band's entire remastered catalog was released and The Beatles: Rock Band video game hit shelves.