NeoPets Inc.'s ad-laden, online virtual world where children care for cyberpets is going to be made into a Hollywood movie.

The Glendale, Calif., company has signed a deal with Warner Bros. Pictures, which will oversee production of animated feature films based on Neopia, the two companies said this week. Producer Dylan Sellers and NeoPets chief executive Doug Dohring will produce the movies.

The deal is the latest marriage of Hollywood and the web. Major entertainment portals like America Online Inc., Microsoft Corp.'s MSN and Yahoo Inc. have aggressively courted movie studios, which have also looked for greater presence on the web to market movies and television programs.

Yahoo, for example, webcast earlier this month the debut of Showtime Networks's comedy series "Fat Actress," starring Kirstie Alley. The simulcast with the TV showing was preceded by two weeks of promotions on Yahoo, that included video clips, photos, upcoming episode information and a link to "Fat Actress" on Showtime's website.

The NeoPets website includes interactive games and contests linked to the virtual world in which young people create, own and interact with virtual pets. The site integrates advertisers' brand, services and marketing message directly into the site's content. Companies taking advantage of NeoPets's "immersive advertising" include the Walt Disney Co.

NeoPets and Warner Bros. will co-finance development of the animation features, which the Internet company hopes will build a bridge to the offline world.

"We are confident that this collaboration will result in the successful expansion of the NeoPets world into offline media," Dohring said in a joint statement with Warner Bros.

Warner Bros., on the other hand, is hoping NeoPets's success on the web can attract moviegoers.

"We're looking forward to expanding this exceptional Internet property into feature films that bring the worldwide appeal of this website to theaters," Jeff Robinov, president of production at Warner Bros. Pictures, said.

The NeoPets says its website has more than 25 million members worldwide and generates more than 7 billion page views per month in 10 languages. NeoPets is among the top family and lifestyle websites, according to Nielsen//Netratings.

Recent pictures produced by Sellers for Warner Bros. include "A Cinderella Story," "Agent Cody Banks," and "Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London."