Depardieu to play monk on screen

Gerard Depardieu looks set to play a Christian monk in a new film.

The 63-year-old French actor has apparently signed up for the upcoming movie, which is based on a script written by Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of Uzbekistan's authoritarian President Islam Karimov.

Uzbek filmmaker Akbar Khakimov told Olam.uz news agency that the film is set in Central Asia around the sixth century, and that Green Card actor Depardieu is on board.

Karimova has frequently been touted as a potential successor to her iron-fisted father, who has ruled the ex-Soviet nation for 23 years.

She is feted back home as a diplomat, philanthropist, singer and fashion designer, but her critics say she has used her power to forcibly take over businesses across the Central Asian nation.