Aidan Turner swaps the scythe for the paintbrush in first-look footage of his upcoming series Leonardo, released on the great artist's birthday.

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The Poldark star will be taking on the role of Leonardo da Vinci for the drama, which was created by Frank Spotnitz (The X-Files, I Medici) and Steve Thompson (Sherlock, Doctor Who) and is distributed by Sony.

The clip shows Turner as a young da Vinci honing his craft while working on one of his most famous commissions, The Last Supper. You can watch it below:

The series is currently expected to land sometime in 2021.

Within the Leonardo cast, Turner is joined by Giancarlo Giannini (Quantum of Solace) in the role of da Vinci's master Andrea del Verrocchio and Matilda De Angelis (The Undoing) as his close friend and mysterious muse, Caterina da Cremona.

Freddie Highmore (The Good Doctor) will also star as a detective eager to solve the mystery at the centre of the story.

According to the official synopsis, Leonardo will "unlock the mystery of one of the most fascinating and enigmatic characters in history – a man whose genius and work is globally known and yet whose true character remains a tantalizing secret."

Executive producer Frank Spotnitz said: "Leonardo is constantly surprising, and despite his fame remains an enigma more than 500 years after his death.

"We’ve uncovered sometimes little-noticed clues about Leonardo’s life and pieced them together in a puzzle that attempts to reveal the humanity behind the genius."

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