The Oscar nominee will also star in the Mumbai-set action revenge film, steeped in Indian mythology.


Dev Patel is getting behind the camera.


The Slumdog Millionaire star, who earned an Oscar nomination for Lion in 2016, is set to direct and star in the Mumbai-based action revenge film Monkey Man, being introduced to buyers at this week's AFM by Endeavor Content, which is handling worldwide sales.


Steeped in mythology, the film will be set in a vibrant modern India and will follow the Kid (Patel), who emerges from prison to take on a world awash in corporate greed and eroding spiritual values.


Developed with the assistance of S'ya Concept, the script was written by Patel, Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Hotel Mumbai, Happy Feet, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World). Basil Iwanyk (John Wick, Sicario) of Thunder Road is producing along with Xeitgeist’s Joe Thomas (The Man Who Knew Infinity, Hotel Mumbai), Samarth Sahni (The Wedding Guest) and Patel.


“Monkey Man is a vibrant, thrilling and above all entertaining story, and we are excited to be teaming up with Dev, who has great creative instincts making him a natural director,” said Iwanyk.


"Monkey Man is filled with vivid characters and thrilling action scenes, and Dev’s precise vision of a stylized and highly energetic genre film will appeal to audiences around the world," added Alex Walton, EVP, international film sales and distribution at Endeavor Content.


Production on the film is set to start in Mumbai in spring 2019, with frequent Park Chan-work collaborator Chung-hoon Chung (It, The Handmaiden, Old Boy) serving as director of photography and 87Eleven (John Wick 1, 2 & 3, Atomic Blonde) set to choreograph and design action sequences.


Patel — who will next be seen in Hotel Mumbai and Armando Iannucci's recently-wrapped The Personal History of David Copperfield — is repped by WME, Magnolia, Curtis Brown Group and Jamie Feldman.