Kellan Lutz is taking his shirt off for his latest role. And when you play the world's first superhero, you kind of have to.
The inaugural trailer for Hercules: The Legend Begins has hit the web and finds the Twilight star looking his brawny best as the titular greek demigod.
The film, directed by Hollywood veteran Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2), puts an action-oriented spin on the ancient myth as it finds Hercules forced to choose between the woman he loves—Hebe, the Princess of Crete, who is promised to his own brother—and exile. He must also fulfill his destiny as the son of Zeus and the greatest fighter of his time.
Naturally, there's lots of gladiatorial-style combat and drawn out sword play (of the slow-motion variety, natch) and the 28-year-old Lutz does his best to live up to the herculean task before him: looking convincing in the part.
That's because he's got some big (and we mean big) competition in the form of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who plays the character in the more high-profile Hercules: The Thracian Wars.
The latter flick follows Hercules' being tapped by the King of Thrace to defeat a tyrannical warlord and unlike The Legend Begins which doesn't have any recognizable stars besides the heartthrob actor, it features a cast including John Hurt, Ian McShane, Joseph Fiennes and Rufus Sewell.
The good news for Lutz and company, however, is that Hercules: The Legend Begins will beat its rival to the big screen as it's schedule for release next March. Hercules: The Thracian Wars, meanwhile, hits theaters on July 25, 2014.