Hollywood, CA (April 29, 2002) � In May 2002, Multiple-Academy Award-winning special effects legend Stan Winston (Terminator 2, Jurassic Park, Aliens) is introducing his third series of collectible action figures, Mutant Earth, which are featured in Winston's first comic book series, Mutant Earth, also debuting in May. The six Mutant Earth figures follow the great popular success of Stan Winston's first two action figure series, Creature Features and Realm Of the Claw.
The Mutant Earth action figures spring from the imagination of Stan Winston and the artists at his world-famous studio. Winston earned four Academy Awards and 10 Oscar nominations for creating special effects magic on worldwide blockbuster films such as Aliens, Terminator 2, Artificial Intelligence, Predator and the three Jurassic Park movies.
The dramatic, highly detailed Mutant Earth action figures are packaged with trading cards that feature their respective biographies, as well as a secret password which gains the buyer entry into one of six special access-controlled character mini-websites, linked to www.StanWinstonCreatures.com. These character-based sites allow fans to further explore the world of Mutant Earth by watching exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of each character's creation, reading artist bios and seeing special photo galleries. Each Mutant Earth action figure features detailed battle gear, a character base and multiple points of articulation.
Also in May 2002, Stan Winston Creatures and Image Comics will launch their first comic book series Mutant Earth. The four-comic series is set in 2099�five years after the Great Alien Invasion�when the desolate Earth is a battleground between the surviving humans, led by heroic Trakk, and hordes of hideous mutants and invading aliens. The six Mutant Earth action figures are:
- Trakk: a knighted Earth Guardian warrior assigned to protect the planet from every foe.
- Horrg The Dismantler: a junk trader from planet, Horrg who has come to Earth in search of spare parts and riches.
- Red Vane: a rarely sighted night creature, who randomly spreads death and chaos wherever he goes, and who is rumored to have been raised from the dead by alien technology.
- Gallowz: a marauder from the skeletal planet Zieth, who has come to Earth to recruit fighters in his bloody quest to reconquer his unhappy homeland.
- Crippler: a former carnival strongman who was transformed into a hideous monster by a radiation blast and who now serves as king of a nomadic circus troupe of vile mutants.
- Moloch: a fugitive outlaw from planet Vest'Hahn, hiding out on Earth.
"With Mutant Earth we've created a literal universe of new aliens and freakish human mutants and set them in a story that takes place about 100 years from now," says Winston. "This line is also exciting in that we're introducing a new hero... Trakk. He's a larger-than-life figure with a mysterious past. In fact, he's going to come into play in a lot of our upcoming toy lines as well. Everyone's going to be learning a lot about Trakk and his origins in the years to come."
Stan Winston Creatures are sold exclusively at Toys 'R' Us stores and at Toysrus.com. The Mutant Earth series will be available in mid-May 2002; SRP: $14.99.
Toys 'R' Us, operates 1607 toy stores worldwide: 703 toy stores in the United States; 509 international toy stores including franchise stores; 184 Kids 'R' Us children's clothing stores; 162 Babies 'R' Us stores; and 49 Imaginarium stores. Toysrus.com sells merchandise on its Internet sites at www.toysrus.com, www.babiesrus.com and www.imaginarium.com.
Headquartered in Van Nuys, Calif., Stan Winston Studio ranks among the most respected theatrical motion picture special effects design facilities in the world. Over the past 30 years, Stan Winston has made dramatic creative contributions to more than 70 movies. In 1981, Stan established Stan Winston Studio, which has been responsible for many of the most enduring creatures of the big screen, including the dinosaurs from all three Jurassic Park films, the "Terminator," the "Gorgonites" and the "Commandos" from Small Soldiers, the extra-terrestrial creatures from James Cameron's Aliens and "Teddy" and the remarkable robots from Steven Spielberg's A.I. Artificial Intelligence.
