'Borat' star Sacha Baron Cohen is set to play flamboyant rocker Freddie Mercury in a dramatic feature focusing on his glory days as the frontman of Queen, its producers said on Thursday.

The untitled film is being written by Peter Morgan, the British scribe behind 'The Queen' and 'The Last King of Scotland'. No director is attached yet.

Shooting will begin next year, said producer Graham King, whose GK Films is partnering on the project with Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal's Tribeca Productions, and Queen manager Jim Beach.

The project has the cooperation of Mercury's estate and the three surviving members of Queen, a spokeswoman for GK Films said. Guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor will oversee the musical content of the film, which will feature both original Queen music and Mercury solo music. (Bassist John Deacon has retired from the music industry.)