Firth, Blanchett for Streisand film

Colin Firth and Cate Blanchett are said to be starring in romantic drama Skinny And Cat, which will be directed by Barbra Streisand.

The period movie, which has been written by Linda Yellen and is described as an "epic love story", follows the real-life romance writer Erskine Caldwell and photojournalist Margaret Bourke White, who collaborated on three books and got married before divorcing a few years later.

Colin is tipped to play the writer, with Lord Of The Rings star Cate as his love interest, reported Showbiz 411.

It would be the first time Barbra has stepped behind the cameras for 16 years, since she directed The Mirror Has Two Faces in 1996. She has also directed Yentl, for which she won the Oscar for best director, and The Prince Of Tides.

Filming is expected to kick off in January 2013.

Colin, who won an Oscar for his performance in The King's Speech, next stars in crime thriller Gambit with Cameron Diaz, and The Railway Man alongside Nicole Kidman.

Cate - who has also won an Oscar for her role in The Aviator - is set to reprise her role as elf queen Galadriel in Peter Jackson's two-part Lord Of The Rings prequel, The Hobbit.