Delpy: "Da Vinci Role Is Mine"

French actress Julie Delpy has set her sights on the role of cryptologist Sophie Neveu in the forthcoming movie adaptation of best-selling book The Da Vinci Code. The Before Sunset star is a huge fan of Dan Brown's novel and is desperate for director Ron Howard to cast her opposite Tom Hanks in the mystery thriller. An American Werewolf in Paris and The Passion of Ayn Rand star Delpy enthuses, "The character is French, in her thirties and has a shade of red in her hair. I can become a redhead."

Hanks To Star in 'The Da Vinci Code'

Ending rampant speculation and betting on the Internet over who will play Harvard professor Robert Langdon in the movie adaptation of The Da Vinci Code, Sony's Columbia Pictures announced Tuesday that it had signed Tom Hanks for the role. Hanks' hiring was originally disclosed in last week's edition of Newsweek, but was not confirmed by the studio. Newsweek quoted producer-director Ron Howard as saying, "Tom is an exciting actor to watch thinking. ... We probably don't need his status from a box-office standpoint [the book has spent 87 weeks atop the New York Times'best-seller list] but he gives Langdon instant legitimacy."