STEVEN SPIELBERG - BRITISH TEENAGER CHOSEN AS MAIN ROLE IN SPIELBERG'S TINTIN

A British six form student has been chose to play the role of Tintin in Steven Spielberg's adaptation of the Belgian cartoon.

Thomas Sangster, 17, was selected by Spielberg to play the boy reporter in a planned trilogy, involving Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson.

Andy Serkis, best known for playing Gollum and King Kong, will play Tintin's friend Captain Haddock.

Sangster has previously appeared in Love Actually as Liam Neeson's son and with Emma Thompson in Nanny McPhee.

And he admitted that he had not read the cartoons until a couple of days ago.

"I love the cartoons. I never saw the books because I was never that big on reading," he said.

"Tintin is like a super boy scout. He would hit people over the head with bottles. He was cool."

The first Tintin movie is set to be released in 2010.