Imax's plans to release DreamWorks' animated feature Shrek in its 150 digital 3-D theatres has been canceled because of increased costs related to creative changes made by the studio, according to news briefings from The Hollywood Reporter.

Based on a children's book by William Steig, Shrek features the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy and tells the story of a green monster who searches for his perfect mate. A scheduled $10 million payment was to be made by Imax for the computer programming required to transfer the 2-D cartoon to 3-D. Also, the Imax release of Shrek was expected to have a different ending than the conventional film to take advantage of the 3-D format.

Shrek is supposedly slated to hit Imax theatres in December 2001, six months after its May 18 debut in traditional theatres. But at this point, it's a mere distant thought. DreamWorks is still reviewing its options for Shrek.

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