Breaking Bad star, Bryan Cranston, has landed his first major starring role in a feature film, signing on to play blacklisted Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo in the biopic Trumbo.

Dalton Trumbo was the highest-paid screenwriter of his era earning an Oscar nomination for his screenplay Kitty Foyle. His career seemingly came crashing to a halt when he was called before House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), refusing to answer any questions about his political affiliations.

He was sent to prison and was one of the infamous "Hollywood 10" writers to be completely blacklisted from the studio system. However, he ended up winning two Academy Awards in the 1950s for the classics Roman Holiday and The Brave One, which he wrote under pen names. He eventually launched a campaign to end the blacklist once and for all, going on to write other classics such as Spartacus, Exodus and Papillon. The writer died of lung cancer in 1976.

Jay Roach is directing the biopic from a screenplay by John McNamara, adapted from the book Dalton Trumbo by Bruce Cook. Groundswell Productions is financing the project, which is eyeing a 2014 production start.

Aside from his starring role on Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston has been featured in a number of supporting roles such as Argo, Total Recall, Rock of Ages, John Carter, Red Tails, Contagion and Drive, just to name a few.