Benedict Cumberbatch to Star in Film Adaptation of THE YELLOW BIRDS

The Hollywood Reporter writes that Benedict Cumberbatch, Tye Sheridan and Will Poulter will star in an adaptation of THE YELLOW BIRDS from the novel by Kevin Powers. David Lowery (Ain't Them Bodies Saints) will write and direct.

"I never had any interest in making a war film until Jeff and Evan brought me the novel by Kevin Powers," Lowery told THR. "And perhaps I still don't, because while Powers' story takes place during wartime, it isn't about the conflict. It is about characters who find themselves caught up in war, but who struggle to not let it define them. I fell in love with them."

Read the original story here.

THE YELLOW BIRDS follows two Iraq War soldiers -- Private Bartle, 21, and Private Murphy, 18. According to THR, "Bartle made a promise to Murphy's mother to guide him home safely and takes the young private under his wing but soon finds that promise hard to keep as they navigate a war where casual atrocity is a daily occurrence".

Well known for his role in the UK TV series SHERLOCK, Cumberbatch will next appear on the big screen in The Imitation Game, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Magik and Flying Horse. Among his recent credits are August: Osage County, The Fifth Estate, 12 Years a Slave, Star Trek Into Darkness, the first two Hobbit films and War Horse.

The actor will star as Richard III in BBC Two's upcoming filmed adaptation of the Shakespeare play, set to air next summer. He will also play Hamlet at the Barbican in 2015. In 2011, Cumberbatch alternated leads in Danny Boyle's stage production of Frankenstein. His other theatre credits include Hedda Gabler, for which he received an Olivier Award nomination.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

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