Aardman has ended its partnership with Dreamworks after their last two films together flopped.

The Bristol-based creators of Wallace and Gromit had signed a five-film deal with the American studio.

But the agreement has been ended early after the poor box office performance of Flushed Away and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Aardman, who also made Chicken Run wth DreamWorks, says their "ambitions have moved apart", reports BBC.co.uk.

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit earned critical acclaim, including an Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film, but did less well at the box office.

Aardman spokesman Arthur Sheriff said: "We always knew that America would be a hard task for us - we're a very English company.

"We embrace the international market but we think part of our strength is our English sense of humour and we want to continue with that."

Crood Awakening, co-written by John Cleese, which had been scheduled to be the fourth joint film by the two companies, will now be solely a Dreamworks project.

The film, about a prehistoric genius who invents fire, is not expected to be released until 2010.

Source: Press Release