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Zhang Ziyi has signed up to star in Mulan.

The Chinese actress – who has appeared in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Hero – will play the lead in English speaking big-screen adaptation of the story of Hua Mulan, the young female soldier who joins an all-male army.

Jan de Bont (Speed, Twister, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life) will direct the film from screenwriter John Blickstead's recreation of the Chinese Joan of Arc story and she is hoping to bring action, drama and romance to the project.

William Morris Endeavor will handle the movie's North American rights while Easternlight Films will be responsible for sales outside North America and Greater China, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Easternlight managing director and Mulan producer Ying Ye said: "This is the first independent film directed by Jan de Bont, whose worldwide box office track record is huge.

It is not the first time the story, which was originally described in a 6th Century poem, has been made into a big-screen adaptation.

In 1998, Walt Disney made a hugely popular animated version of the same name, featuring Eddie Murphy as the voice of a miniature dragon.

Other characters in the film, including Mulan's family, have yet to be cast.

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