Leonardo DiCaprio and Vinnie Jones Team Up for Irish King Tale?

Are you ready for Leonardo DiCaprio doing an Irish accent? He probably should have played Irish in Titanic, but now he'll really have to master the accent for a historical epic called Freedom Within the Heart. Set 1,000 years ago, the film is about Brian Boru, the High King of Ireland who united the country in battle against a Viking threat. Since Boru was at least 60 when he became King, DiCaprio seems a bit young to play the lead, but according to a story from February, the actor was indeed being sought for that very role. At the time, former soccer pro Vinnie Jones was also reportedly cast as Boru's nemesis, Ivor of Limerick. Now, confirming DiCaprio's involvement is a press release from Limerick.com, which states the two actors will be joining Irish filmmaker Mark Mahon in the village of Tuamgraney, in County Clare, provided the Irish Film Board accepts a bid for the production to shoot there. There are hopes that the movie will bring tourism to the area in the same way movies like Braveheart and Rob Roy have brought people to Scottish locales.

Despite earning an Oscar nomination for Blood Diamond, a lot of people thought he did a terrible job with the South African accent, so we'll have to see how he does with the Irish. He could be criticized enough for playing such a legendary figure and not actually being Irish, so if he gets the accent wrong, he'll only make things worse. However, plenty of similar epics have been made without great accuracy, and fans of medieval action probably won't mind.

[via Dark Horizons]