Publisher greenlights new movie in conjunction with the late author Beatrix Potter's 150th anniversary.

Columbia Pictures, a division of Sony Pictures, has partnered with Frederick Warne & Co., part of Penguin Random House U.K., to create a new live-action/CG movie based on Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit series that will arrive on screens in spring 2018.

The new film will be made at Animal Logic, an Australia-based animation and visual FX production studio, and will be directed by Will Gluck. James Corden is set to voice Peter and Rose Byrne will star in the live-action female lead role of Bea. Daisy Ridley and Elizabeth Debicki have also joined the voice vast.

Sony Pictures Entertainment, in association with Frederick Warne, will create and execute the worldwide licensing and merchandising program for the new movie.

Frederick Warner has been Potter’s publisher since the publication of The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1902. Through the new film, the company will aim to bring Potter’s classic character and story to a new family audience.

The announcement follows the late author’s 150th birthday, which is being celebrated this year with a raft of consumer products.

“We are Penguin Random House U.K. are delighted to be working with Columbia Pictures,” says Tom Weldon, chief executive officer, Penguin. “As custodians of Beatrix Potter’s brand and legacy, we are excited about the opportunity this production will bring to engage a whole new audience with the world of Beatrix Potter and one of her best-loved characters, the mischievous Peter Rabbit.”

Production on Peter Rabbit is expected to begin in January 2017 and is slated for worldwide release in April 2018.