Sir Ian McKellen to be subject of new documentary

Sir Ian McKellen is to be the subject of a new documentary.

The 77-year-old actor has starred in a number of blockbuster movies including ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘X Men’, and now he is set to get his own documentary which aims to explore his rich and varied experiences both on screen and off.

Joe Stephenson is directing the project, named ‘McKellen: Playing The Part’, and managed to conduct 14 hours of interview time with the British actor, which will be used amongst recreations of scenes from the star’s life, as well as rare archive material of his early work and photographs from his own collection.

Speaking to Variety, Joe said: "Here is an opportunity to show them [the audience] his incredible, and inspiring trajectory from his modest childhood in the north of England to Tony winning star of the stage, from one of the first actors to speak openly about his sexuality to becoming an internationally recognized two-time Oscar nominee."

Joe also revealed that he wanted the chance to "talk candidly" to the star, in order to gain an insight into his "journey and philosophy" that hadn’t been done before in a regular interview.

He added: "While Ian has been interviewed many times, and lives a life very much in the public eye, we wanted to talk candidly to him about his journey and philosophy in a way that may not have been done. It’s an honor to tell the story of someone still so relevant and active in our industry, and my hope is that an audience might walk out of the cinema as inspired by his journey as I am, feel like they better understand how he has got to where he is today, and celebrate not just his awesome achievements, but the man himself."

‘McKellen: Playing The Part’ is yet to have a release date, but sources suggest the project will likely be out next year.