"Da Vinci Code" movie

Tom Hanks will reportedly star in a Da Vinci Code movie. I've personally read the book, which has generated all sorts of contraversy, and thought it very entertaining. It's a shame, though, that Angels & Demons won't hit the silver screen first. Perhaps with Hanks' star power, though, the prequel is likely.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks is expected to star in a film adapted from Dan Brown's popular novel "The Da Vinci Code," the Hollywood Reporter reported Monday.

Hanks, who will play the role of Robert Langdon, the professor who unravels the mystery, was the top choice for director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer, the report said. Columbia Pictures hopes to begin shooting the film next year.

Talks have begun for Hanks to join the project. "Tom is an exciting actor to watch thinking," Howard was quoted as saying. "We probably don't need his status from a box office standpoint, but he gives Langdon instant legitimacy."

Hanks, who currently can be seen onscreen in animated form in Warner Bros. Pictures' "The Polar Express," previously worked withHoward in 1995's "Apollo 13" and 1984's "Splash."