Mickey Rourke to play Conan`s father

Los Angeles: Mickey Rourke is in talks to play Conan`s father in "Conan," a resurrection of the fantasy franchise that made Arnold Schwarzenegger a star. The Lionsgate project sees barbarian warrior Conan (Jason Momoa) embark on a quest to avenge the slaughter of his people including his father, Corin. Shooting is scheduled to start in Bulgaria in March. Marcus Nispel ("Friday the 13th") will direct.

Rourke, who had been tipped off to play the father by website Latino Review in January, was offered the role, but dealmaking fell apart. The two sides came back to the table in the last couple of weeks. Rourke has been making the most from his Oscar nomination last year for "The Wrestler." In a similar path to John Travolta after his "Pulp Fiction" nomination, Rourke has signed on to a slew of projects, ranging from high-brow ("Passion Play" with Bill Murray and Megan Fox) to low-brow ("The Expendables" with 1980s action heroes) to big commercial plays ("Iron Man 2"). Schwarzenegger played the hero in 1982`s "Conan the Barbarian" and its 1984 sequel "Conan the Detroyer." Bureau Report