Ansel Elgort to play young JFK in new war movie

Actor and DJ Ansel Elgort has signed on to play the young John F. Kennedy in a new movie.

The Fault in Our Stars actor will play the future U.S. leader in Mayday 109, the true story of Kennedy's heroic stint in the U.S. Navy during World War Two.

He was the captain of a boat that was attacked and sunk by a convoy of Japanese destroyers, leading to one of the most dramatic rescues in Naval history, according to Deadline.com.

"We could not be more excited about Ansel coming aboard," Mayday 109 producer Basil Iwanyk says. "Not only is he a tremendous actor, he embodies the charisma, athleticism and looks of a young JFK.

"We love that this is not a biopic nor a film about politics. This is simply a riveting and unbelievable tale that very few people know - about a young man who was a hero long before becoming the iconic 35th President of the United States. With Ansel, we've found our perfect JFK."

Elgort has jumped on board the project ahead of a director, but the script is from Samuel Franco and Evan Kilgore, who are the writers behind Keeper of the Diary - the new film about Otto Frank and Barbara Zimmerman's struggle to publish The Diary of Anne Frank.

Kenneth Branagh will direct that film and star as Otto.

Ansel is on a career high at the moment after releasing his latest hit track You Can Count On Me earlier this month (Jun17) under his DJ name Ansolo, and he's the star of new ensemble action film Baby Driver, which hits cinemas in America on Friday (30Jun17).