Jeremy Renner 'can't wait' for Steve McQueen role

Jeremy Renner "can’t wait" to play his hero Steve McQueen in a forthcoming biopic.

The 'Bourne Legacy' star is set to take on the role of the Hollywood legend in a new film – which is loosely based on Marshall Terrill’s 1993 biography, ‘Steve McQueen: Portrait of an American Rebel' - and the 41-year-old actor admits it will be "really tough" to portray the 'Great Escape' star.

Jeremy said: “I think he’s an icon. I’ve seen quite a few of his movies and I just thought he would be a really interesting guy to explore.

“Biopics are really tough - it’s hard to tell someone’s life story in two hours. He was a walking dichotomy: the most stingy and frugal person, and then the most giving. And his upbringing was interesting.

"The film will be more a slice of life rather than an entire life, but we’re still figuring it out. I can’t wait to jump into it.”

Jeremy's latest movie sees him star as government-trained assassin Aaron Cross in 'The Bourne Legacy', but he has no interest in taking on the role of lead character Jason Bourne – who was played by Matt Damon in the first three instalments of the franchise but doesn’t appear in the current film – in the series.

He added: "I would never ever play Jason Bourne. I don’t want to take over someone else’s role. You could throw me whatever amount of money and it’s still not going to happen. I’m a fan of the Bourne series; I feel that as an actor, I fit into it.”