Cult sci-fi favourite to be given Welsh makeover

A cult sci-fi favourite is to be given a Welsh makeover courtesy of David Bowie's son.

Filmmaker Duncan Jones has revealed the casting for his upcoming adaption of Rogue Trooper, a project which was first announced in 2018.

The futuristic soldier, a staple of long-running UK comic 2000 AD, will be played by Bridgend's Aneurin Barnard.

And it seems the character will also be a Welshman, with Jones tweeting hints about his nationality.

"I'd just like to take credit for giving the world its first non-Tom Jones Welsh superhero," posted the director, who won a BAFTA for his debut 2009 film Moon.

The 52-year-old added: "A Welsh Rogue Trooper, how the hell did that happen?", before admitting being inspired by the rousing speech Newport-born actor Michael Sheen gave on TV in 2022 for Wales's football team ahead of the World Cup.

Asked by one fan if the character will have a Welsh accent, Jones replied: "It is a very, very regional film."

Created in 1981 by Gerry Finley-Day and Dave Gibbons, Rogue Trooper tells the tale of a blue skinned, genetically-modified infantryman fighting a seemingly never-ending war on a ravaged planet known as Nu Earth.

He is accompanied by three comrades-in-arms, previously killed in battle, whose minds have been uploaded into "bio-chips" and installed in various pieces of equipment - namely his helmet, rucksack and gun.

These will be voiced in the film by Daryl McCormack, Jack Lowden and The League of Gentlemen's Reece Shearsmith.

Also set to feature are Hayley Atwell, Jemaine Clement, Matt Berry, Diane Morgan, Alice Lowe, Asa Butterfield and Sean Bean.

Filming for the animated epic, which utilises ground-breaking technology to bring it to life, has already been completed and it looks set to be released in 2025.

It is the second time a 2000 AD regular has been given the Hollywood treatment, with two cinematic outings for lawman Judge Dredd having been made - one in 1995 starring Sylvester Stallone and another in 2012 with Karl Urban in the lead role.

"2000 AD has a very different flavour of comic action - political and brutal at times, but always with a Pythonesque twinkle in the eye," said Jones in a statement.

"Dredd was a taste of what it has to offer and now we get to show the world another side of the beast.

"It is a genuine privilege to be given the opportunity to make Rogue Trooper."