If there's an up-side to Spartacus: War of the Damned being over, it's that it frees up the cast for other projects. Between shooting in New Zealand and the rigorous gladiator training, availability for films between seasons probably wasn't particularly plentiful. But Spartacus has come to an end, and it looks like the series' star, Liam McIntyre, has already found his next project. He'll be starring alongside Kellan Lutz in Renny Harlin's Hercules 3D.
Harlin knows a thing or two about delivering the action, having helmed such films as The Long Kiss Good Night and Cliffhanger, not to mention the second Die Hard film. He also has a few episodes of USA's upcoming new series Graceland among his credits. And coming soon, he'll helm one of two Hercules projects headed to the big screen. Kellan Lutz will play the title role in Image/Millennium's period action film, which is not to be confused with the Hercules project in the works at Paramount and MGM, which has Dwayne Johnson attached to star.
THR reports that Liam McIntyre has signed on to play a young army captain who becomes Hercules' most trusted battlefield companion. McIntyre's character and Hercules are sold into slavery after being deceived by an evil king. The two partner up to fight for their freedom.
For those of us who watched McIntyre in his starring role in Starz's Spartacus series, it's not difficult to picture him fighting his way out of slavery. The Australian actor joined Spartacus after the first season, following the death of the original star, Andy Whitfield. McIntyre played the title role in Spartacus: Vengeance and the most recent and final season, Spartacus: War of the Damned, which had his character leading an army of rebels through Italy to fight the Roman armies led by Caesar and Marcus Crassus. Prior to Spartacus, McIntyre appeared in an episode of The Pacific, but the majority of his credits were for projects in Australia. Hercules 3D will not only be his first post-Spartacus role, but his first big Hollywood film. Hopefully, this is just the beginning of big things to come for the actor.
THR says McIntyre just relocated to Los Angeles since Spartacus wrapped up, but from the sound of it, his new Stateside residency won't put him anywhere near his next job. Hercules is set to start shooting next month in Bulgaria.
