Josh Brolin joins George Clooney for Coen brothers' Hail Caesar

Josh Brolin is to reunite with the Coen bros for their forthcoming period comedy Hail Caesar, reports The Wrap.

The Coens previously cast Brolin in the 2007 Oscar-winning Tex-Mex crime thriller No Country for Old Men, which elevated the American actor to a new level of fame. Co-starring George Clooney, Hail Caesar is said to be about 1950s Hollywood fixer Eddie Mannix, who spends his time vying to keep his boss's clients out of the gossip columns. Bob Hoskins played Mannix in the 2006 film Hollywoodland, which centred the Hollywood bigwig's association with the death of 1950s TV Superman George Reeves, who was reportedly having an affair with Mannix's wife.

It has not been announced if Mannix will be portrayed by Clooney or Brolin. Universal Studios picked up Hail Caesar for distribution on Monday, but has not announced a release date. Joel and Ethan Coen will direct from their own screenplay.

The film was previously reported to be the final instalment in the Coens' loose "numbskull trilogy", which included O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Intolerable Cruelty, both with Clooney. In December, Ethan Coen said: "It's about the movie business and life, and religion and faith."