Daniel Day-Lewis to Star in Spielberg's Lincoln

By

&

by Peter Gicas | Sat., Nov. 20, 2010 6:20 AM

Toronto Star/ZUMApress.com; Lester Cohen/WireImage.com

Will reciting the Gettysburg Address lead to reciting yet another Oscar speech?

That just may happen considering how two-time Academy Award winner Daniel Day-Lewis has signed on to play the 16th president of the United States in a new biopic directed by Steven Spielberg.

PHOTOS: Movies From the Future!

Lincoln is based on the bestselling book Team of Rivals by historian Doris Kearns Goodwin and was adapted into a screenplay by Tony Kushner, who also wrote Spielberg's film Munich.

"Daniel Day-Lewis would have always been counted as one of the greatest of actors, were he from the silent era, the golden age of film or even some time in cinema's distant future," said Spielberg in a statement. "I am grateful and inspired that our paths will finally cross with Lincoln."

Shooting is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2011.

PHOTOS: Casting Couch