Sharlto Copley for Angelina Jolie film

Cape Town – District 9 star Sharlto Copley is in negotiations to play the male lead in Maleficent, Disney's live action retelling of the Sleeping Beauty tale, which has already secured Angelina Jolie as the evil fairy, reports Deadline.

Jude Law has previously been linked to the role of King Stefan, the father of Princess Aurora, according to the movie's IMDb listing.

This version of the well-known fairytale focuses on the back story of Sleeping Beauty and is told from the perspective of the evil Maleficent (played by Jolie) who curses the young Princess Aurora.

Oldboy

Elle Fanning has been attached to the role of Princess Aurora, though the casting of the role has not yet been confirmed.

Maleficent is due for release in March 2014.

This news follows closely on the casting of Johannesburg-born Sharlto as the villain in Spike Lee’s remake of Korean cult thriller Oldboy.

He has also landed the lead in Open Grave, playing a man who wakes up in a pit full of dead bodies and comes to suspect that he was the murderer.

Sharlto's next highly anticipated role will be in sci-fi thriller Elysium, reuniting him with his District 9 director Neill Blomkamp, which also stars Matt Damon and Jodie Foster.

Elysium is due for release in 2013.