Washington, May 15 -- 'Shogun' star Cosmo Jarvis will star as Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in the biopic 'Young Stalin'.

Georgian-French helmer Gela Babluani has signed on to direct the period thriller that is being financed by Len Blavatnik's Access Entertainment, reported Variety.

Based on Simon Sebag Montefiore's famous classic, 'Young Stalin' follows the Soviet strongman from his early days as a bank-robbing bandit in pre-revolutionary Russia. Babluani and Sebag Montefiore wrote the screenplay for the film, which is also supported by AI Film and Monte Rosso Prods.

Set against the backdrop of Imperial Russia's criminal underworld and revolutionary ferment, the film explores the making of the bloody dictator who would reshape the 20th...