Ananova:

Will Smith is to star in a sci-fi thriller set in a post-apocalyptic New York.

I Am Legend is about the last healthy man following the release of a virus that decimates the population.

Variety says Smith has already signed up for the Warner Bros film which will be directed by Francis Lawrence.

The script has been adapted from a Richard Matheson novel by The Da Vinci Code screenwriter Akiva Goldsman who worked with Smith on I, Robot.

Shooting is scheduled to begin in New York early next year.