EXCLUSIVE: Lionsgate International will commence pre-sales at AFM next month on the Johnny Depp action comedy Mortdecai that has begun shooting in London (October 21) as well as the action epic Gods Of Egypt with Gerard Butler.

David Koepp directs Mortdecai, marking the first project under Lionsgate and OddLot Entertainment’s co-financing and distribution deal announced last month.

Depp, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ewan McGregor, Paul Bettany and Olivia Munn star in the story of a roguish, globe-trotting art dealer who encounters Russian mobsters and British spies as he races to recover a stolen painting that may indicate the whereabouts of Nazi gold.

Guy Burnet, Michael Byrne, Michael Culkin, Jonny Pasvolsky, Ulrich Thomsen and Paul Whitehouse have also joined the cast.

Andrew Lazar, Depp, Christi Dembrowski and OddLot founder Gigi Pritzker are producing and Eric Aronson adapted Kyril Bonfiglioli’s book series, The Great Mortdecai Moustache Mystery.

Meanwhile, Alex Proyas will direct Gods Of Egypt, based on an original fantasy screenplay about a mortal in Ancient Egypt who teams up with a vengeful god on a mission of love as an evil ruler threatens to take over the world.

Basil Iwanyk and Proyas are producing the action tale and Proyas co-wrote the screenplay with Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama.

Aside from Butler the key cast includes Brenton Thwaites, who will be seen in 2014 starring opposite Angelina Jolie in Maleficent, as well as Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Geoffrey Rush.

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