Thor and RRR star Ray Stevenson has the lead role in it 1242: Gateway to the West after Kevin Spacey left the landmark Genghis Khan drama last year amid allegations of sexual assault in the UK
Galloping Entertainment’s Carlos Alperin, who will continue to sell the worldwide rights to the film at the European Film Market in Berlin, confirmed Stevenson’s casting to The Hollywood Reportr. Directed by Péter Soós, de 1242 cast also includes Eric Roberts, Christopher Lambert, Neil Stuke and Genevieve Florence.
“The movie simply looks EPIC and will be positioned very well because of Ray Stevenson’s great role in RRRas well as the political background of the war between Russia and Ukraine,” Alperin said THR in a statement.
Historically, the Mongols invaded both Ukraine and Russia, as well as Poland, before entering Hungary in 1242. Alperin added that 1242 has been filming in Hungary for 30 days and has 15 days left to complete production, while Stevenson and Roberts just arrived on set this week.
Spacey was front on the movie poster 1242 when it was first sold to international buyers in Cannes in 2022. At the time, the House of cards star wanted to resume his acting career after #MeToo sexual misconduct allegations that derailed his TV and film roles.
Spacey was formally charged with five counts of sexual assault in the UK in May, with the two-time Oscar winner pleading not guilty at London’s Old Bailey in July. The trial is scheduled for June. Also, by the end of 2022, Spacey faced a further seven sex offense charges in the UK, bringing the total to 12.
In October, a US jury sided with Spacey, finding that he had not sexually assaulted Anthony Rapp, then 14, when both were relatively unknown Broadway actors in 1986.
Alperin added that 1242 will not be delivered to buyers until December due to the large number of special visual effects still to be completed.
