Jared Leto to play Andy Warhol in biopic

This new take on the life of the legendary artist comes from Terence Winter, best known for his work on Broadwalk Empire and The Sopranos, who based his script on Victor Bockris's 1989 book Warhol: The Biography.

Warhol has been portrayed in films many times before, including by Jared Harris in I Shot Andy Warhol and John Cameron Mitchell in the recently canceled HBO series Vinyl. This new take looks to be a more detailed exploration of the man's tumultuous life.

Warhol shot to fame in the 1960s with his unique take on American consumerism, painting such significant pop culture objects as Campbell's Soup Cans and Coca-Cola bottles, as well as celebrities like Marylin Monroe and Elvis Presley.

Openly gay at a time when homosexuality wasn't readily accepted, Warhol became a fixture at New York's Studio 54 nightclub in his later years. Amid his success, he suffered from hypochondria and was the victim of a murder attempt in 1968. He died in 1987.

Leto will also produce the film, alongside Michael De Luca, whose credits include The Social Network, Captain Philips and Fifty Shades of Grey.

The actor will next appear alongside Ryan Gosling in Blade Runner 2, the long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scott's classic sci-fi, and continues to perform with rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars.