Al Pacino is set to star as King Lear in the new Shakespeare film adaptation.
Clearly they made him an offer he couldnt refuse.
The 78-year-old is still in his prime, as hes taking on one of Shakespeares most coveted roles.
The upcoming film will be directed by Michael Radford.
Lear is the one that everyone aims for, he explained to the Observer. Al has been toying with the idea for a long time.
The director previously worked with Al on The Merchant of Venice, in which he starred as Shylock.
Theres a difference between Shylock, whos only in five scenes, and Lear, who is in every scene, pretty much, he added.
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Its enormous. I think [Pacino] would like to have that kind of kudos because hes a terrific actor.
Barry Navidi, who also worked on The Merchant in Venice, is producing the upcoming film.
Comparing the two films, he said: Before, we had the passion and the desire, but we never had a start date. We all have the energy to do [King Lear] now. Were creating, hopefully, an epic.
Michael and Al are going to stick to the original poetry. But a lot is to do with the delivery and the visuals.
How Michael combines it and makes it more accessible, it becomes naturalistic rather than forced.
The casting comes after it was reported that the Godfather actor has been quietly dating 39-year-old actress Meital Dohan.
More: Al Pacino
An insider told Page Six: They initially kept things very private, but now they are not making a secret of their relationship.
Theyve been quietly seeing each other for a few months and they seem very happy.
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