A cast worthy of Da Vinci

Audrey Tautou is to line up alongside Tom Hanks and Jean Reno in the film version of The Da Vinci Code.

16:02 24 January 2005

The film version of The Da Vinci Code looks set to cause as much excitement as the bestselling novel by Dan Brown as the cast for the forthcoming production is gradually revealed.

Reports suggest that Audrey Tautou, the star of quirky French romance Amelie, is to line up alongside Tom Hanks and Jean Reno when filming on the Christian history thriller begins later this year.

Tautou, who is currently starring in A Very Long Engagement, is being tipped for the role of cryptologist Sophie Neveu - the granddaughter of Jacques Sauniere.

Columbia Pictures have already lined up Hanks, the star of Saving Private Ryan and Forrest Gump, to play Harvard University symbology professor Robert Langdon.

And Leon and Ronin star Reno has agreed to play the intimidating French police captain Bezu Fache - a role he seems to have been born to play.

Although film adaptations of bestselling novels often lead to disappointment, the string of genuinely talented actors linked with the forthcoming project promises that this one may match the book's success.