Tom Hardy to play first man who climbed Mount Everest in adventurer's biopic

Tom Hardy is to portray George Mallory - a man who made multiple attempts to be the first man to scale Mount Everest - in a new movie.

The 'Dark Knight Rises' actor is in talks to appear in 'Everest', a biopic of 1920s climber George Mallory who wanted to become the first man to scale the huge peak in Nepal.

The adventurer made two unsuccessful attempts in 1921 and 1922, while Australian climber George Finch was also trying to complete the feat first.

Though Mallory's family begged him not to try again, he and climbing partner Sandy Irvine tackled the peak, using oxygen, in 1924 but never returned.

In 1999, his body was found below the summit and it is still unclear whether he made it to the summit as a photo of his wife he had taken with him was never discovered.

Doug Liman is to direct the movie from Shelton Turner's script, which will be adapted from Jeffrey Archer's book 'Paths Of Glory'.

The filmmaker is currently working with Tom Cruise on 'All You Need Is Kill', but 'Everest' will be his next project.