Jason Statham lands next film role – starring as Jason Statham

Throughout his film career, it's fair to say that Jason Statham has mastered the art of playing a very particular type of character: bruising, intense, often rather taciturn action heroes who use their impressive physical abilities to get the better of their many enemies.

It's a role he's played in everything from The Transporter to – most recently – Shelter, with almost every role he's taken on in recent years fitting more or less into the same violent, stoic archetype.

It's the kind of filmography that might lead some fans to accuse him of "always playing the same character" – and it looks like he's now taken that pattern to its logical extreme.

That's right: for his next role, Statham is due to star as none other than… Jason Statham.

According to Deadline, the action star is set to play himself in a big-budget action-comedy from Bullet Train and The Fall Guy director David Leitch. The film – which is amusingly titled Jason Statham Stole My Bike – is penned by Alison Flierl (BoJack Horseman) and will reportedly have a budget of $80 million.

While little has been given away about the precise plot at this stage, it seems safe to assume we can expect a fairly tongue-in-cheek movie, with Statham likely to be playing up to his aforementioned on-screen persona.

Meanwhile, Deadline also reports that the film will include a number of major action set pieces, which is perhaps no surprise given both Statham's involvement and Leitch's extensive background when it comes to stunt work.

Of course, Statham will be far from the first big-name actor to play himself in a meta movie, with notable examples including John Malkovich in Being John Malkovich and Nicolas Cage in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

It certainly sounds like a fun proposition, and we'll be on the lookout for any further updates.

Statham's recent release Shelter arrived in cinemas at the end of January, and speaking exclusively to Radio Times about the film, the star revealed that he'd been drawn to the project due to its "emotional core".

"I'm always looking for something that catches my instinct for... I kind of look for movies that I'd like to go and see myself," he said. "And this kind of film is something that I have a personal taste for."

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