Mickey Rourke has a killer new role - playing a Mafia assassin in THE ICE MAN.
The star will also team up with the author of the original 2006 book, Phil Carlo, to produce the forthcoming picture.
Rourke will portray multiple killer Richard Kuklinski, who worked for several Italian-American crime families.
Kuklinski claimed to have murdered more than 200 men over 30 years before his arrest in 1986 and subsequent death in 2006.
And Carlo is delighted that The Wrestler star is taking on the role, because they became instant pals when they met earlier this year (09).
He tells New York Post gossip column PageSix, "We hit it off beautifully. He's really looking forward to being the Ice Man, and I think he'll do a great job.
"We're producing it together. We'll shoot in the spring in New York, New Jersey and Florida."
And Rourke is convinced the role could have a huge effect on his career, similar to the notoriety Robert De Niro gained when he portrayed boxer Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull in 1980.
Carlo adds, "He's talking about it being his Raging Bull."