Principal photography has started in London on Warner Bros’ adaptation of John Carter of Mars, the first in author Edgar Rice Borroughs’ Barsoom Series. The film, which is set on a war-wounded Mars, will follow the journey of Civil War veteran John Carter (played by X-Men Origins: Wolverine star Taylor Kitsch) as he battles a devastating war against a strange Martian race.

The film is being directed by Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, Wall-E), who co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Chabon. Alongside Kitsch in the stellar cast will be Mark Strong (Sherlock Holmes), Willem Dafoe (Antichrist), Dominic West (TV’s The Wire), Thomas Haden Church (Spider-Man 3), Samantha Morton (Synecdoche New York) and James Purefoy (the upcoming Solomon Kane).

And the talent is no less impressive behind the camera. Oscar-nominated production designer Nathan Crowley (Public Enemies, The Dark Knight) will be bringing the Mars landscape to life, while cinematographer Daniel Nindel (Star Trek, Mission Impossible III) and video effects supervisor Peter Chiang (The Reader, The Bourne Ultimatum) will also be bringing their talents to the project.

“I have been waiting by whole life to see the characters and world of John Carter of Mars realised on the big screen,” says Stanton. “It is just a wonderful bonus that I have anything to do with it.”