If he gets his way, Mickey Rourke will be hopping roles from a Russian villain to a Mongolian conquerer, to play Genghis Kahn in a film written and directed by John Milius- at least that’s what he tells the Orlando Sentinel…

“I read his script and you know, the man is known for his tough writing. He wrote Conan and and Dirty Harry, Apocalypse Now, and it’ll be interesting to see how he works behind the camera. I’m playing Genghis.”

…which sounds pretty concrete. The Sentinel asked about several projects that Rouke’s been circling or rumored to be circling, but it is the Kahn film that got him talking apparently. Mickey describes being excited to play a fellow famous dog-lover, to work in India and China for the first time, and to get into horseback archery, as well as dropping a little bit of information about Miliu’s general approach to the story.

“John wrote as a piece told from the son and grandson’s point of view, how they saw this mythic figure from their family. You see him in flashbacks, back when he was in his mid-40s. And back then, being in your mid-40s was being REALLY old.”

Look for more details on the project when and if anyone besides Rourke mentions it.