Sacha Baron Cohen will star in Warner’s Mandrake the Magician.
Etan Cohen, who made his directorial debut on “Get Hard” for the studio, is on board to direct with Atlas Entertainment producing. The studio is seeking a writer for the project, which has been in development for more than a decade.
Mandrake first appeared in Lee Falk’s 1934 comic strip as a stage magician and powerful illusionist who spent his efforts battling gangsters, mad scientists, extraterrestrials and characters from other dimensions. The character was the subject of a 12-part serial Columbia Pictures released in 1939.
Sacha Baron Cohen starred earlier this year in Sony’s comedy The Brothers Grimsby, which failed, and is currently starring as Time in Alice Through the Looking Glass, also a commercial flop
Etan Cohen’s writing credits include “Tropic Thunder,” “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” and “Men in Black 3.”