Jake Gyllenhaal Is 'Prince Of Persia'

(andPOP) - Jake Gyllenhaal has signed on to star in the video game adaptation "Prince of Persia: The Sands Of Time."

The Disney flick will feature Gyllenhaal as Dastan, a prince in sixth-century Persia who tries to stop an villainous nobleman from getting his hands on the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can control the flow of time.

Gemma Arterton will play Tamina, an exotic princess who teams up with Dastan. The 22-year-old relative newcomer will also appear in the upcoming Bond movie "Quantum of Solace," due out in November.

Mike Newell ("Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire") is on board to direct "Prince of Persia," with Jerry Bruckheimer as producer. Game creator Jordan Mechner was part of the team who wrote the script.

The Ubisoft game was first released in 1989 and gave rise to several sequels.

Depending on the success of the movie, Bruckheimer and Disney are expected to pursue a film franchise along the lines of the producer's previous hit series "Pirates of the Caribbean."

The big-budget flick will begin shooting in July in Morocco and London, and is expected to hit theatres in summer 2009.