Sewell To Play Charles II For A&E

[Brett Ferino]

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - British actor Rufus Sewell has signed on to play English King Charles II in an upcoming miniseries about the 17th-century monarch.

The four-hour miniseries, a co-production by A&E and the BBC, is scheduled to begin shooting in Prague next month. It will chronicle Charles II's time on the throne, which coincided with the Great Plague and a fire that destroyed much of London, and his personal life.

"This is a complex, rich portrait of a king, not to mention an incredibly sexy one," executive producer Delia Fine tells The Hollywood Reporter. "Rufus is just the right actor to play such a fantastic character."

Sewell's credits include "A Knight's Tale" and "Dark City." Rupert Graves ("The Forsyte Saga" ), Sewell's co-star in last year's "Extreme Ops," will play Lord Buckingham in the miniseries.

Adrian Hodges ("David Copperfield," "Lorna Doone" ) wrote the script. It's expected to air late this year or in early 2004.