Poldark star joins cast of new movie about the life of Jesus

Irish star Aidan Turner as Ross Poldark in BBC hit series, "Poldark."(Photo: BBC)

Aidan Turner, star of The Hobbit and hit BBC TV show, Poldark, is the latest cast member to be confirmed for a new movie about the life of Jesus.

"The Last Planet" is the latest film by Terrence Malick, best known for World War II movie The Thin Red Line.  A release date has not yet been confirmed but the film is expected to come out in cinemas in 2022. 

It will tell the life of Christ through a series of parables and has already confirmed a string of respected actors, including Mark Rylance (Dunkirk) as Satan. 

Rylance told reporters at the Deauville film festival earlier this month that he would be playing four different versions of Satan.

"Terry wrote four versions of the character of Satan and I thought I would play only one. But I heard I was going to play all four. One of them must have been a woman at some point, but it was when he asked me to grow a beard that I realized I wasn't going to do it that way," he said.

He revealed that he felt some trepidation in signing on to a movie by Malick.

"I'm very happy to act for Terrence Malick, but I'm intrigued because I hear he talks to you all the time. And coming from the theater, I'm not used to the director yelling at me while I act or tell me what to do. But his films always intrigued me," he said.

Turner has been cast in the role of the disciple Andrew, according to Deadline, while Jesus is to be played by Hungarian actor Géza Röhrig, who starred in the 2015 wartime movie Son of Saul

Turner, who has won legions of fans for his portrayal of Captain Ross Poldark, confirmed his latest role on his Facebook page, saying: "It's official." 

Matthias Schoenaerts (A Hidden Life) is set to play Peter, while One Big Soul reports that Joseph Fiennes (The Handmaid's Tale), Douglas Booth, Alfonso Postiglione, and Lorenzo Gioiell are also in the movie.

Postiglione said in an Instagram update that he would be playing the role of "producer", while Fiennes would be "the director".  According to his update, Booth has been cast as "the writer", while Gioiell will be playing "the other producer".