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Philip Seymour Hoffman In Talks For A Most Wanted Man

Set to star in Anton Corbijn's adaptation of John le Carre novel.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is set to star in an adaptation of A Most Wanted Man.

The actor is in final negotiations to lead the latest film from director Anton Corbijn (The American, Control). Andrew Bovell (Edge of Darkness) has adapted the screenplay from the best-seller by Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy novelist John le Carre.

In a statement found at Film4, producer Gail Egan said: "We will start shooting in Hamburg in September and are delighted to be working with Anton Corbijn on this film. His unique vision for le Carre's complex and stylish story is very contemporary, very real, very human."

The synopsis, including details of Hoffman's character: A Most Wanted Man takes place in present day Hamburg where a mysterious, tortured and near-dead half-Chechen, half-Russian man on the run arrives in the city's Islamic community desperate for help and looking to recover his late Russian father's ill-gotten fortune. Nothing about this young man seems to add up; is he a victim or a thief or, worse still, an extremist intent on destruction? Drawn into this web of intrigue is a private British banker and a young female lawyer determined to defend the defenseless. All the while, they are being watched by the brilliant, roguish chief of a covert German spy unit (Hoffman), who fights to put the pieces together as the clock ticks.

Hoffman, known for his roles in Magnolia, Happiness, Capote and Mission: Impossible III, was recently seen in The Ides of March and Moneyball. He's just reunited with director Paul Thomas Anderson for their fourth collaboration, in the title role of The Master.