Frears to start shooting Lance Armstrong biopic in France

Stephen Frears, the award-winning British director of "The Queen" and "Dangerous Liaisons", will this week start shooting his biopic of legendary-turned-notorious cyclist Lance Armstrong, French media said.

Filming of the provisionally titled "Cycling Project" will begin Friday in the French Alps, with other locations including the northeastern Ardennes region and Britain, the daily newspaper Le Parisien said. Frears's biopic will trace the career of the cancer survivor who finally admitted in January 2013 that he had cheated his way to a record seven Tour de France titles.

European companies Studiocanal and Working Title will co-produce the films, the trade journal Film Francais said. British actor Ben Foster from the TV series "Six Feet Under" will play the disgraced Armstrong who has been banned for life from the sport for taking performance-enhancing drugs. 

The screenplay by Danny Boyle's "Trance" writer John Hodge will be based on the book by journalist David Walsh, who investigated Armstrong and cycling's vast doping scandal.