George Clooney is the most recent star to sign onto ‘Gravity,’ Cinemablend.com is reporting. The Academy Award-winning actor is taking over the male lead role from Robert Downey, Jr., who was forced to drop out because of scheduling issues. The news comes after the female lead role saw several different castings as well; Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johannson and Natalie Portman were all on board before Sandra Bullock signed on.

‘Gravity,’ which is being helmed by ‘Children of Men’ director Alfonso Cuaron, will feature Clooney and Bullock as astronauts. Their characters are part of a space exploration team whose space station is destroyed during an accident. They’re the only two still alive, but are stranded in space without any means of contacting Earth. The film is expected to begin filming in the spring, after Clooney finishes directing ‘The Ides of March.’

Written by: Karen Benardello