And now for his next trick, Sacha Baron Cohen will star in MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN for Warner Bros. Get Hard writer-director Etan Cohen is set to direct the film, which is based on the popular character from the syndicated newspaper comic strip created by Lee Falk in 1934. The most recent drafts of the script come from David Peoples and Janet Peoples and Puss In Boots scribe Tom Wheeler.

The story centers around the adventures of Mandrake, the illusionist and escape artist with the power to hypnotize his foes. With his companion Lothar, he travels the globe solving mysteries and fighting evildoers – including his twin brother who uses his powers for evil instead than good. Sources say that the plan is to update the character for the 21st century, with Mandrake being recruited by the United States government for a secret mission.

The character, who has been described as “America’s first superhero,” is known as a magician whose work is based on an unusually fast hypnotic technique, through which his subjects see illusions when he “gestures hypnotically.” He uses the technique to defeat villains, including gangsters, mad scientists, extraterrestrials, and characters from other dimensions. He has the ability to turn invisible, shapeshift, levitate, and teleport thanks to the powers imbued to him by the hat, cloak, and wand he inherited from his father. Read more..

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