Kellan Lutz will plan a tattooed assassin in 'Tatua'.

The 'Twilight' hunk has signed up to star in Aaron Sims' upcoming indie flick as a man with a rare blood type that allows him to be tattooed with a powerful ink, enabling him to pull weapons straight off his skin.

Producer Rick Schwartz commented: ''Kellan was in the foreground and the background of the 'Twilight' saga films, but he is a formidable physical presence and this is an opportunity for him to step up. 'Tatua' at its heart is a cool, visually arresting origin story.''

The storyline, adapted from the comic book by Paul Jenkins and Rob Prior, will kick off when the assasin's son is kidnapped by one of his most dangerous targets and he goes on a violent revenge mission. The inked-up killer must use his tattoo weapons quickly or they begin to dissolve and harm his own body.

Rick told Deadline.com he was searching for a film that would be less expensive than the superhero genre, but similar to 'Resident Evil' and 'Underworld'.

Aaron will be making his directorial debut with the feature, having previously helmed viral sensation short film 'Archetype'.

Paul Layden wrote the script and Rick Schwartz - whose production credits include 'Black Swan' and 'The Departed' - will be assisted by Todd Breau and Kari Hollend.

Production is scheduled to begin next March in Toronto with a budget of $15 million.