First a director, and then a new name, and now finally a star, the upcoming film 300: Battle Of Artemisia has finally gotten some momentum.

THR is reporting that Animal Kingdom star and indie darling Sullivan Stapleton has joined the cast of the 300 follow-up, and will star as Xerxes, who leads an army against the forces of Greek general Themistokles. Stapleton will next be seen in WB’s Gangster Squad.

Personally, as a person who found 300 to be almost unbearable to watch, I don’t have much hope for this project. Director Noam Murro doesn’t really fit the material as director, but with Zack Snyder back aboard as producer, you can definitely expect the film to be low on brains, and high on brawn. Now, if somehow they can turn Frank Miller’s source material into something both action-packed and a bit brainer, this could be one hell of an action film. If, is a big question however.

[Source: THR]