Long before the Marco Polo series hit Netflix (it was recently renewed), a big screen effort based on the 13th century Venetian explorer has been in the works. The Hunger Games' Francis Lawrence gave it a go, and so did Tarsem Singh (Mirror Mirror) with nothing getting off the starting blocks. But now a new project is on the way and it will start Anakin Skywalker himself, Hayden Christensen.
Christensen is set to headline Marco Polo, which Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious) will direct as a grand fantasy/adventure. Polo embarked on an epic 24-year journey into China, with his adventures chronicled in a book that introduced much of Europe to Chinese culture.
So why task Christensen with a film like this when he's been out of the spotlight for a number of years? He still has a large international following and producers China Film Group want to capitalize on that. Plus he's probably on the low-end of the salary scale. [THR]
