Mickey Rourke has joined the ensemble cast of The Expendables, Sylvester Stallone's action adventure which he wrote and will direct for Nu Image/Millennium Films.

According to Variety, Rourke will play an unscrupulous arms dealer who becomes the go-to guy for a group of mercenaries planning to topple a South American dictator.

Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Randy Couture and Dolph Lungdren play the title characters. Forest Whitaker and Ben Kingsley are also circling the project.

The Stallone-scripted film begins shooting in March in Brazil. Avi Lerner, John Tompson and Kevin King Templeton are producing, with Boaz Davidson, Trevor Short and Danny Dimbort exec producers.