Benedict Cumberbatch eyes Doug Liman’s Everest

Award-winning actor Benedict Cumberbatch is in early talks for forthcoming drama film Everest. Film’s director Doug Liman had all plans to cast Tom Hardy as British mountaineer George Mallory in his venture but due to scheduling issues with the latter, the filmmaker decided to pull out Hardy and sign in Benedict to become the frontrunner.

Many actors like Hiddleston, James McAvoy, Henry Cavill, Matthew Goode, Dan Stevens and Joel Kinnaman are under scanner to play the rival climber George Finch in the film but nothing is certain yet. Evert tells the story of George Mallory, who climbed Everest in 1921 and 1922 with partners Mallory and Sandy Irvine. When they went to make their third attempt, they vanished and never came back. The fact that if they made it to Everest or not is still unknown. The flick based on Jeffrey Archer’s book Paths of Glory, will be scripted by Sheldon Turner. The film is in pre-production stage and is likely to go on floors by March next year. Benedict is currently busy with Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: There and Back Again and The Imitation Game.