The first image of Lord of the Rings and Star Trek star Karl Urban in the upcoming reboot of Judge Dredd has shown up online.

Urban will be playing the same lead role played by Sylvester Stallone in the 1995 adaptation. But while the look of Dredd himself isn’t too different here, it’s been promised that this new movie will not be anything like that attempt, and will be completely and totally faithful to the original comic which debuted in the UK’s 2000 AD magazine.

Along with Urban, the movie also stars Olivia Thirlby (Juno, The Wackness) as Cassandra Anderson, and is currently filming in Johannesburg, South Africa.

You can head on over to the other side now to read the synopsis and check out the first image of Karl Urban as Judge Dredd now!

Rumors have been swirling lately that Karl Urban was in line to take on the title role in the new Judge Dredd remake, and the actor wasn’t necessarily denying them at the recent San Diego Comic-Con 2010. Now comes word out of Movie-Con III (via Empire) that the rumors have evolved to reality, and Urban will be stepping into the shoes once worn by Sylvester Stallone in the 1995 movie of the same name.

Now, if you’re a fan of the ’95 movie, this might not be the best news to you, but let’s be honest: that was a fairly cheesy adaptation of a popular comic book series. The comic, created by John Wagner, Pat Mills, and Carlos Ezquerra, has been featured in the UK’s weekly comic book publication 2000 AD since its debut in 1977. It takes place in a futuristic world where judges are basically super-cops who apprehend, pass judgment upon, and even execute those that they find guilty.