Kevin Costner's epic Western Horizon to premiere at Cannes Film Festival

On the announcement of his film's Cannes premiere, Costner said: "I’d like to thank the Festival de Cannes for including my film Horizon: An American Saga in this year’s selection.

"It’s been 20 years since I’ve had the pleasure of being on the Croisette. I’ve been waiting for the right time to return and I’m proud to say that this time has come.

"Horizon: An American Saga is a story that began 35 years ago, and I can’t think of a better place than Cannes to reveal to the world the result of such a wonderful adventure.

"The French have always supported films and believed deeply in filmmaking. Just as I believe deeply in my film."

As well as directing the new films, Costner will also star alongside Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington and Jena Malone, to name a few of the key figures in the extensive cast.

Not much is currently known about the exact details of the epic four-part film series, but it has been described as a "monumental project about the cost, in terms of war and violence, of the construction and expansion of the United States of America".

The full Cannes line-up is set to be announced later this week, but for Costner's Horizon saga, this is only the beginning of what is set to be a treat for any Western film fans.

The movie synopsis says that Horizon "explores the lure of the Old West and how it was won — and lost — through the blood, sweat and tears of many".

"Spanning the four years of the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, Costner’s ambitious cinematic adventure will take audiences on an emotional journey across a country at war with itself, experienced through the lens of families, friends and foes all attempting to discover what it truly means to be the United States of America," it continues.

Just a month ago, a trailer for the new film was released, finally giving us glimpses of some of the action and drama to come, as well as at the cast - which also includes Jamie Campbell Bower, Abbey Lee, Michael Rooker, Danny Huston and plenty more.

The Horizon film series marks Costner's return to directing after 2003's Open Range.

Of course, Costner is well known for his directorial debut Dances with Wolves, the 1990 blockbuster which went on to win seven Academy Awards. The setting for Dances with Wolves, Civil War-era America, will be revisited in Horizon.

When asked which of the two films was more difficult to make, Costner told Variety: "This is by far the biggest struggle.

"I’m shocked at what we were able to get. I shot Dances for 106 days, I shot the movie you’re just seeing right now in 52.

"I did learn a lot, and I was able to use every trick in the book to try to bring this movie to ground and to bring it to an audience. And there’s four of them!"

Horizon: An American Saga will premiere on Friday 28th June.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.