Aronofsky wants Russell Crowe to star in Noah

Russell Crowe is in talks to play the titular character in, Noah , the epic Biblical tale of Noah's Ark attemping to withstand the mighty flood.

The film has been on Oscar-nominated director Darren Aronofsky's mind for some time and it's understood Crowe is his first choice for Noah, with Liam Neeson also high on the list for a rumoured villain.

Aronofsky's film will see Noah, a man who adores Earth's animals and land, at a loss at the ways other humans are damaging the planet. There's no word on when the script will be set, though there have been rumours of a sci-fi element to it (styled off The Fountain perhaps?)

Aronofsky originally wrote the script with Ari Handel before John Logan performed a rewrite on it.

Filming details seem to point to Crowe and Aronosky boarding the Ark in July if everything goes to plan.