Steven Seagal to star in Nikita Mikhalkov’s upcoming film

Oscar-winning Russian director Nikita Mikhalkov has announced plans for a film starring Steven Seagal and hopes that the movie, which will be co-produced and evenly financed by Russian and American studios, will be an “extravagant and useful” experience, TASS state news agency reported yesterday.

Mikhalkov told TASS that they first discussed collaborating after meeting a few years ago but that the director wanted to steer Seagal away from the genre “in which he has achieved his success”. Although neither Mikhalkov nor Seagal have yet disclosed what the film will be about, the director has suggested that this will be an opportunity for the Hollywood action hero to play a new role, adding “I saw a lot in him that has never been used in movies.”

The Russian director is not the only one who has seen potential in the actor. Earlier this year the Russian President, who is a friend of Seagal’s, proposed that he be appointed Russia’s “honorary consul” in two American states.