Tom Hardy joins the yakuza in 'The Outsider'

This crime drama will mark Japanese director Takashi Miike's first foray into English-language cinema, reports Deadline.com.

Tom Hardy has signed up for the lead in this indie thriller produced by Joel Silver ("Die Hard," "Sherlock Holmes"). In this original screenplay by Andrew Baldwin, the English actor plays a US veteran who joins the Japanese mafia, the Yakuza, in the aftermath of World War II.

Takashi Miike will be shooting "The Outsider" in 2014. This prolific cult Japanese director is notorious for his raw depictions of violence, especialy in "Ichi the Killer" (2001), "Audition" (1999) and "Shield of Straw," which met with a mix of cheers and boos at the latest Cannes Film Festival.