He may look like the bastard son of Alan Moore and Will Ferrell, but the man pictured to your right is actually the director of Conan, Nu Image/Millenium Films/Lionsgate reboot of the barbarian franchise once powered by the massive muscles of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

That’s right, after years in development hell a new Conan the Barbarian movie is at last, actually happening. It’s been confirmed by multiple sources, including the trades. They say the remake (and yes it is a remake) will swing into production later this year with filming to happen in Bulgaria and South Africa. The script their using is written by Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer.

So what’s it about? If you’ve seen the original, then you already know. All accounts seem to agree this is a remake which means a rehashing of the story of a child sold into slavery and grows into a barbarian out for revenge. A reboot also means no Schwarzenegger. Brace yourself for a myriad of casting rumors involving every actor, wrestler, and used car pitch man with a pectoral bulge.

It seems likely that Nispel got this job based, in part, on the success of his Friday the 13th reboot which was released earlier this year. It’s worth noting however that this isn’t his first foray into the world of vengeful barbarians. Nispel was also responsible for the widely panned, generally hated, 2007 movie Pathfinder. It starred Star Trek’s Karl Urban and Terminator Salvation’s Moon Bloodgood in the story of a Viking boy raised by Native Americans to grow up into a vengeful warrior who takes on all comers.