Benjamin Walker in Talks to Join Chris Hemsworth for Ron Howard's THE HEART OF THE SEA

According to Deadline, Ben Walker is nearing a deal to star opposite Chris Hemsworth in Ron Howard's upcoming film THE HEART OF THE SEA.

The film from Warner Bros., and based upon Nathaniel Philbrick's book, "tells the fact-based tale of Nantucket whaling ship the Essex, which was stalked and ultimately destroyed by a sperm whale in 1820. Stranded thousands of miles from home, the crew struggled to survive; they were lost at sea for 90 days. Eight were rescued."

The events were the inspiration behind Herman Melville's classic novel MOBY DICK.

Walker, should he finalize a deal, will play George Pollard, "the arrogant privileged son of a whaling family who attempts to use his family name as an advantage to gain captaincy, and who butts heads with shipmate Chase (Hemsworth), who knows the job and the sea much better. Pollard's rep is ruined because of a mishap with another ship and he is relegated to night watchmen duty for the rest of his life."

For the original report, head on over to Deadline.

Walker graduated from the Julliard Actor Training Program in 2004. Afterward, he appeared in the Clint Eastwood directed Flags of Our Fathers for Dreamworks SKG and Bill Condon directed Kinsey for Fox Searchlight. In 2007, Benjamin performed in the Broadway revival of Inherit The Wind, starring Christopher Plummer, Brian Dennehy, and Denis O'Hare, under the direction of Doug Hughes. In 2008, he performed in Roundabout Theatre's production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses opposite Laura Linney, which was nominated for six Tony awards. Benjamin played the title role in the Alex Timbers' musical, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, in the show's world premiere at the Kirk Douglas Theater in Los Angeles, CA. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson re-opened in New York to rave reviews and Benjamin returned in the starring role of Andrew Jackson. Benjamin most recently starred in Timur Bekmambetov's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter for 20th Century Fox and producer Tim Burton, in which he played Lincoln, based on the novel by Seth Grahame-Smith of the same name. He will next be seen in HBO's "Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight" as Kevin Kennedy, a Supreme Court clerk who wrote the legal briefs resulting in the guarantee of Ali's status as a conscientious objector. Walker recently wrapped the Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which also starred Scarlett Johansson.

Photo by: Walter McBride