Tom and Jerry are to return to the big screen in a live-action remake, according to industry reports. The animated cat and mouse, who debuted on the small screen in the 1940s, will follow in the footsteps of fellow Hanna-Barbera character Scooby-Doo. The 2002 film version of Scooby-Doo and 2004 sequel, Monsters Unleashed, made £330m ($457m) at the global box office. Trade paper Variety says the new film will concentrate on how Tom and Jerry met and their subsequent rivalry. Box office success Spurred on by the success of live action hit Alvin and the Chipmunks, Warner Bros is also developing big screen versions of Hanna-Barbera cartoons The Jetsons and Yogi-Bear. Sales of complementary merchandise, DVDs and computer games are also considered strong income generators. Alvin and the Chipmunks proved an unexpected hit for Fox studio in 2007, earning £260m worldwide. A sequel is expected to follow next year. Tom and Jerry began as a series of 114 animated shorts, produced between 1940 and 1960. The much-loved cartoons won seven Academy Awards. An animated feature-length version, Tom and Jerry: The Movie, was released in 1992. Source:BBC