Matthew McConaughey Joins Gus Van Sants' 'Sea of Trees'

Matthew McConaughey has signed on to star in Gus Van Sant's upcoming "Sea of Trees."

Variety is reporting that the actor will star opposite Ken Watanabe in the drama which follows a suicidal American (McConaughey) who befriends a Japanese man (Watanabe) lost in a forest near Mt. Fuji.

The script was written by Chris Sparling ("Buried," "ATM") and Gil Netter ("Life of Pi," "Water for Elephants," "The Blind Side") who will produce the drama.

McConaughey recently received his first Academy Award nomination for his work on "Dallas Buyers Club." He also starred in the acclaimed films "Mud," "Magic Mike," "The Wolf of Wall Street," and "Killer Joe." McConaughey recently starred in "Bernie," "The Paperboy" and "The Lincoln Lawyer." McConaughey recently made a foray into television in the HBO hit series "True Detective." The actor will next be seen in Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar" with Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain.

The film marks the first picture for Van Sant since his 2012 misfire "Promised Land." The director is best known for his work on the Academy Award nominated films "Milk" and "Good Will Hunting." He has also directed "Paranoid Park," "Elephant," "Restless," "Last Days," and "Finding Forester."

Watanabe is best known for his work on "Batman Begins," "Letters From Iwo Jima" and "The Last Samurai" for which he was nominated for the Academy Award. The actor has also appeared in "Inception" and "Shanghai." Watanabe will next appear in Martin Scorsese's "Silence," "Unforgiven" and "Godzilla" with Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen and Bryan Cranston.