Hollywood actor Johnny Depp has landed a challenging new role - he will star in a film based on the life of Italian Renaissance poet Dante.

Depp's production company, Infinitum Nihil, has bought the screen rights to Nick Tosches' 2002 book, In The Hand of Dante.

The story will parallel the lives of a modern-day writer, played by Depp, and Dante as he attempts to complete his classic work The Divine Comedy. It is not yet known which actor will play the title role.

The Divine Comedy, written between 1308 and 1321, constructs Dante's vision of the Christian afterlife and leads him through the three realms of the dead - Purgatory, Hell and Heaven.