Ryan Gosling to play Neil Armstrong in upcoming biopic

After dazzling audiences as a struggling artist in La La Land, Ryan Gosling has set his sights on the cosmos. The Hollywood Reporter says the actor has signed on to play Neil Armstrong in a biopic based on the book First Men: A Life of Neil A. Armstrong.

If that wasn’t cool enough, Gosling is re-teaming with La La Land director Damien Chazelle, who also wrote and directed 2014’s Whiplash.

Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the moon as part of the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. He also spoke the famous words, “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”

In addition to his tenure as a NASA astronaut, Armstrong was an aerospace engineer, naval aviator, test pilot, and later a university professor. He was also an officer in the U.S. Navy and served in the Korean War. He was just 39 years old when he stepped foot on the moon.

I can’t wait

The Hollywood Reporter says the movie, titled First Man, will focus on the years between 1961 and 1969, focusing on Armstrong’s journey through the ranks before eventually participating in one of the most dangerous missions in history.

Gosling is set to appear in Blade Runner 2049, with First Man reportedly set to begin filming sometime next year.