Golden Globe winning actor Richard Gere is to lend his considerable talents to the indie flick Franny, a film about a man who invades the lives of a newlywed couple. He very much plays ‘the man’. His character is described as a "hedonistic philanthropist" as he invades another couple’s life, desperately attempting to recreate his younger years.

No one else has been cast in the film, or if they have, no one knows about it. This is the first feature for Gere since last year's Arbitrage.

Gere recently pledged his life to Buddhism, saying: “It's relevant to everything I do. Buddhism is the camel of my life. It's there everywhere. I don't think you have to be Buddhist to get it, quite honestly. I'm more interested in secular ethics, about what we all have in common. What is good? What is happiness? What is our duty to ourselves?”

He is best known for his roles in An Officer and a Gentleman, Pretty Woman and Hachi: A Dog’s Tale. His status as an 80s sex symbol came about via his breakthrough role as Julian in American Jigalo. Most recently he starred in the Nicholas Jarecki-directed Arbitrage, which saw Gere play Robert Miller – a man who, unbeknown to his family and colleagues, cooked his company’s books to hide an investment loss and avoid being arrested for fraud.

It gained hugely positive reviews, accumulating an 87% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The Financial Times said at the time: “Gere is matchless in this kind of role. The lacquered crinkle of the smile; the corrugated silk hair; the eyes deep-pouched and glinting like coins in a rich man's wallet.” Franny will see Gere reunite with Andrew Renzi, the producer behind Arbitrage, and director of the films, ‘After School’, ‘The Fort’ and ‘Karaoke!’. Production is set to get underway next month, and QED will launch international sales of the film at Toronto.

Richard GereRichard is gearing up for an indie flick role in Frannie