Butler to star in Robert Burns biopic

Gerard Butler will reportedly begin work on the long-awaited Robert Burns biopic later this year.

According to The Times, production on the £5 million movie has been given the greenlight after a government-backed campaign to raise funding.

Most of the budget is reportedly now secured, including an investment from Scottish Screen. The remaining funds will be raised through a series of "subscribers" to the film, who will each commit a specific sum of money to the project.

First Minister Alex Salmond, who will host a dinner at Edinburgh Castle in May to help raise any outstanding sums, said: "Robert Burns is rightly regarded as Scotland’s favourite son.

"It would be great for Scotland if Burns could be immortalised in modern film, particularly as we mark the 250th anniversary of his birth this year and celebrate his genius through Scotland’s Year of Homecoming."

The movie, directed by Hogfather's Vadim Jean and scripted by Rob Roy's Alan Sharp, will mark the first screen biopic of the poet since the 1930s. It will be filmed on location in Edinburgh and Ayrshire.

Glasgow-born Butler has been attached to the project for several years. His previous screen credits include 300, Beowulf and PS, I Love You.