December 5, 2012 11:01

Matt Damon to join George Clooney and Daniel Craig in 'The Monuments Men'

A period drama set in Nazi Germany, the film will be Clooney's next project as director

Matt Damon is set to join the stellar cast of The Monuments Men - George Clooney's latest project as director.

According to Deadline, Damon is currently "negotiating" a role in the period drama, whose cast already includes Daniel Craig, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, Hugh Bonneville and The Artist's Jean Dujardin.

The film is based on a book called The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves And The Greatest Treasure Hunt In History by Robert M Edsel. In addition to directing and starring in the movie, Clooney has also written the script with his regular collaborator Grant Heslov.

Set in Germany during 1944 and 1945, the story follows a crew of art historians and museum curators on the hunt for precious works taken by the Nazis as Hitler's empire is falling apart. Shooting is due to begin in January (2013) in Europe.

Meanwhile, Damon will next be seen in Gus Van Sant's Promised Land, a drama about the difficulties of drilling for oil and gas in a small American town. The film is due to open in UK cinemas on April 19, 2013 and you can watch the trailer below.