Bachchan makes Hollywood debut in ‘The Great Gatsby’

Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan attends a news conference to promote his forthcoming movie ''Aarakshan'' (reservation) in Kolkata July 27, 2011.

Mumbai (Reuters) - Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan will be part of Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of “The Great Gatsby”, in a role that marks his first foray into Hollywood.

Bachchan, who turns 69 next month, joins an illustrious Hollywood cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Macguire and Carey Mulligan, producers Warner Bros said on Thursday.

Bachchan will essay the role of Meyer Wolfsheim, who was a gambler in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic novel of the same name. DiCaprio stars in the title role of Gatsby.

Principal photography for “The Great Gatsby” began this week in Australia. In August, Bachchan mentioned on his blog he was visiting the country for a couple of days.

"Time has been spent well and hopefully judiciously. Days ahead will tell us whether it was fruitful or not,” Bachchan blogged from Sydney on Aug 29.

Bachchan has never acted in a Hollywood film in his four-decade career, but has come close. He was supposed to act in Mira Nair’s adaptation of the novel “Shantaram” with Johnny Depp, but the film never took off.

Luhrmann said he was “thrilled” to be working with Bachchan.

“Over the years, Amitabh’s films have made a tremendous impression on my life and work. His film 'Sholay' was my introduction to Indian cinema," Luhrmann was quoted as saying by news agency IANS.