Yahoo! Movies has premiered the trailer for Universal Pictures’ upcoming animated feature The Tale of Despereaux.

Images from the film, as well as the official synopsis are below.

In this modern-day fairy tale, Matthew Broderick voices Despereaux, a big-eared little mouse from the faraway kingdom of Dor, whose bravery makes him an outcast and eventually an exile. (Dustin Hoffman) voices the good-natured rat Roscuro; Pea Harry Potter Emma Watson voices Pea, a Princess in a gloomy castle who is prisoner to her father’s grief; and Tracey Ullman voices Mig, a servant girl who longs to be a Princess, but is forced to serve the jailer.

The Tale of Despereaux opens in theaters December 19, 2008.

Synopsis

Once upon a time, in the faraway kingdom of Dor, there was magic in the air, laughter aplenty and gallons of mouthwatering soup. But an accident left the King broken-hearted, the Princess filled with longing and the townsfolk without their soup. Sunlight disappeared. The world became gray. All hope was lost in this land…until Despereaux Tilling was born.

A modern fairy tale, The Tale of Despereaux tells the story of four unlikely heroes: Despereaux (Matthew Broderick), a brave mouse banished to the dungeon for speaking with a human; Roscuro (Dustin Hoffman), a good-hearted rat who loves light and soup, but is exiled to darkness; Pea (Emma Watson), a Princess in a gloomy castle who is prisoner to her father’s grief; and Mig (Tracey Ullman), a servant girl who longs to be a Princess, but is forced to serve the jailer.

Tiny and graced with oversized ears, Despereaux was born too big for his little world. Refusing to live his life cowering, he befriends a Princess named Pea and learns to read (rather than eat) books—reveling in stories of knights, dragons and fair maidens. Banished from Mouseworld for being more man than mouse, Despereaux is rescued by another outcast, Roscuro, who also wants to hear the tales. But when the Princess dismisses Roscuro’s friendship, he becomes the ultimate rat and plots revenge with fellow outsider Mig.

After Pea is kidnapped, Despereaux discovers he is the only one who can rescue her…and that even the tiniest mouse can find the courage of a knight in shining armor. In this tale of bravery, forgiveness and redemption, one small creature will teach a kingdom that it takes only a little light to show the truth: what you look like doesn’t equal what you are.

Release date: December 19, 2008
Teaser site: www.thetaleofdespereauxmovie.com
Genre: Animated Adventure
Rating: Not yet rated
Studio: Universal Pictures
Cast: Matthew Broderick, Robbie Coltrane, Frances Conroy, Tony Hale, Ciaran Hinds, Dustin Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Kevin Kline, Frank Langella, Christopher Lloyd, William H. Macy, James Nesbitt, Stanley Tucci, Tracey Ullman, Emma Watson and Sigourney Weaver
Directed by: Sam Fell, Rob Stevenhagen
Screenplay by: Gary Ross
Based on the Book by: Kate DiCamillo
Produced by: Gary Ross, Allison Thomas
Executive Producers: William Sargent, Ryan Kavanaugh, David Lipman, Robin Bissell

Images