Luc Besson already has Dane DeHaan and the Pokemon-loving Cara Delevingne aboard for his ambitious new sci-fi epic Valerian. With those two in place, he’s adding to the roster, with Clive Owen signing on to play a character called Commander Arün Filitt.
Originally created by writer Pierre Christian and artist Jean-Claude Mezieres in 1967, the series of graphic novels charts the adventures of the titular time-travelling agent (DeHaan) and his female sidekick, Laureline (Delevingne). As for how Filitt fits into the story? That’s left for us to guess at the moment.
After [#danedehaan](https://twitter.com/hashtag/danedehaan?src=hash) & [#caradelevigne](https://twitter.com/hashtag/caradelevigne?src=hash) I'm proud to announce that mister Clive Owen is part of the Valerian adventure!!:) [pic.twitter.com/SaW3mX5OzP](http://t.co/SaW3mX5OzP) > > — Luc Besson (@lucbesson) [August 19, 2015](https://twitter.com/lucbesson/status/634119508437790720)
According to Deadline, which got a gander at storyboards for the film last month, this promises to be the biggest project Besson has tackled since The Fifth Element, with visions of a futuristic world that blends that film with Star Wars and Blade Runner, populated with all manner of weird creatures and just five human characters. He’s spending $180 million to bring it to life and has been clearing space at his studio in Paris because he needs all available soundstages. Oh, and he’s retaining one of the comic book titles, with the film currently called** Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets**.
The cameras should be rolling on this one early next year. Owen has been at work on the next season of US cable drama The Knick and is also attached to comedy pic** King Of The Kastle**.