The latest issue of Empire Magazine has revealed four new photos for the upcoming Hercules, featuring Dwayne Johnson as the title character, Tobias Santelmann as the mountainous Rhesus, Rufus Sewell as the villainous Autolycus, and director Brett Ratner. Based on the Radical comic book series, Hercules explores the origins of this mythical character, as he leads a team of mercenaries who fight battles for others, provided the price is right. Tasked with defeating an evil warlord by the ruler of Thrace, Hercules faces his greatest challenge yet, to become the hero he used to be. Take a look at these images, then read on to see what Dwayne Johnson has to say about the scope of this epic summer action-adventure.

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Dwayne Johnson revealed that Hercules is much darker than fans may expect, while explaining how the title character has lost faith in himself.

"(This is) the role of a lifetime. This is darker, grittier and edgier than people might expect. When we first meet Hercules, he's been exiled from Athens after being accused of committing a horrific crime. He's a mercenary who's lost his faith. He doesn't believe believe in gods or legends, just in spreading his own legend. But what makes a strong man is a willingness to get better. That and an ability to down a fifth of tequila in one night!"