Robert Pattinson has exited “Mission: Blacklist,” an indie thriller about the hunt for Saddam Hussein, due to scheduling issues, TheWrap has learned.

First announced in May 2012, Pattinson was set to play military interrogator Eric Maddox, who spearheaded Hussein's capture.

That role will now be recast, and the filmmakers hope to start production this fall.

Swedish filmmaker Jesper Ganslandt remains attached to direct from a script by “Band of Brothers” scribe Erik Jendresen, Dylan Kussman and Trace Sheehan, who adapted Harper Collins’ 2008 book “Mission: Black List #1,” written by Maddox and Davin Seay.

Preferred Content's Ross Dinerstein is producing with Jendresen and Kevin Waller, as well as Bart Rosenblatt of Code Entertainment, which is also financing the film.

Pattinson has a busy spring with two films heading to Cannes — David Cronenberg's “Maps to the Stars” and David Michod's “The Rover.” He also recently wrapped the role of photographer Dennis Stock opposite Dane DeHaan's James Dean in Anton Corbijn's “Life.”

Looking ahead, Pattinson is attached to star alongside Benedict Cumberbatch in James Gray's “The Lost City of Z” and the James Marsh thriller “Hold On to Me” with Carey Mulligan. He's repped by WME, 3 Arts Entertainment, Curtis Brown Group and attorney Robert Offer.

Source | Via