As of right now, La La Land is thought to be the favourite to win the Best Picture Oscar at next year’s Academy Awards, but director Damien Chazelle has already shifted his focus to his next project. That will apparently be Neil Armstrong biopic for Universal Pictures.

However, here’s where things get really exciting. Ryan Gosling is set to reteam with the filmmaker by taking on the role of the iconic astronaut. He’s been the first choice for a while apparently, but it’s only now that a deal has closed and the script (written by Spotlight’s Josh Singer) is ready to go as Chazelle looks to start shooting the movie early next year.

First Man is based on James Hansen’s biography First Man: A Life Of Neil A. Armstrong, and “tells the story of NASA’s mission to land a man on the moon, focusing on Neil Armstrong and the years 1961-1969. A visceral, first-person account, the movie will explore the sacrifices and the cost — on Armstrong and on America — of one of the most dangerous space missions in history.” Clint Eastwood was originally planning to direct the movie.

However, the changed in 2015 when Chazelle came on board, and you can see why Universal is keen on making this one happen as soon as possible after the success of La La Land both critically and financially. As a result, expect this to be an Oscar contender come 2018…