Leonardo DiCaprio to play Vladimir Putin in upcoming film

Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio has agreed to play the part of Russian President Vladimir Putin in an upcoming movie, according to a report by Russian television channel TV Rain (Dozhd).

The report, which cites sources closes to the production of the film from independent multi-national studio Knightsbridge Entertainment, states that the film will be entitled Putin and is set for release in spring 2017. Filming for the political thriller, which will centre on the life and work of Mr Putin, will take place in Russia, the United States and Europe.

According to Valery Saaryan, representative of Knightsbridge Entertainment in Asia and Europe, work on the film has been ongoing over the last year and the final version of the script has now been approved. Saaryan declined to disclose details of the film’s director, but noted that three people worked on the script and that the film’s casting includes several prominent Hollywood stars, adding that these cannot be named before the start of shooting.

This news comes after Leonardo DiCaprio expressed his desire to play Putin, Lenin or Rasputin in a movie during an interview with German newspaper Welt am Sonntag in January.

“Putin would be very, very, very interesting. I would like to play him,” DiCaprio stated.

St Petersburg-based studio Lenfilm also announced its readiness to shoot DiCaprio in the role of Lenin.

Source: TV Rain (in Russian)