HOLLYWOOD superstar Angelina Jolie is to star in a Scots-inspired movie.

Jolie will play a supervillain in an ultra-violent $100million (£51m) sci-fi blockbuster.

She will star alongside Scots actor James McAvoy in Wanted, the big-budget adaptation of the comic book series by Coatbridge-born writer Mark Millar.

Jolie will play The Fox, a leader in an international cult of assassins and the ruthless mentor to McAvoy's character.

She teaches her naive charge how to kill, steal - and get away with it.

Jolie joins a cast that already includes Oscar-winner Morgan Freeman.

South Side-based writer Mark Millar said: "She's probably the biggest female film star in the world right now and a really good actress.

"She's got a very powerful presence and she's Morgan Freeman's right-hand man - so to speak - in the film. It needs to be someone intimidating and she's a great choice for a role like that."

Wanted looks set to elevate McAvoy - currently to be seen with Anne Hathaway in Becoming Jane - to the Hollywood A-list.

Set on the streets of New York, the new film is to be directed by cult Russian director Timur Bekmambetov, director of Night Watch, in his first, eagerly-awaited English language film.

Filming of Wanted, produced by Universal Pictures, is scheduled to start in Prague in April, following by shooting in Chicago.

The movie is due for release in spring 2008.