News: It seems Morgan Freeman will not be playing Mandela anymore. Subscribe to our newsletter for latest information regarding the movie.

Morgan Freeman will play former South African President Nelson Mandela in "The Human Factor," an independently financed drama, based on the upcoming John Carlin book "The Human Factor: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed the World."

Freeman, who this weekend reprises his role as God, alongside Steve Carell in the Tom Shadyac-directed "Evan Almighty," will produce the Mandela film with his Revelations Entertainment partner Lori McCreary and Mace Neufeld. South African scribe Anthony Peckham ("Don't Say a Word") wrote the script.

Pic is set after the fall of apartheid, when South Africa was host to the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Mandela was in his first term as South African president, and he used the event as a way to end decades of mistrust and hatred between whites and blacks.

Freeman and McCreary traveled to South Africa last year to discuss the project with Mandela.

"I have known Nelson Mandela personally for quite some time, and am continually in awe of his enormous presence in the world," Freeman said. "The opportunity to portray Nelson Mandela in this film is a great honor."

Molo Says: Read more on Nelson Mandela's 89th Birthday soccer match, players in the Mandela Soccer Match, The Mandela movie set on Robben Island, the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa or recent movie stars in Cape Town such as Daniel Craig, or read more about the film industry in Cape Town.

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