Will Smith will star in the long gestating Warner Bros. sci-fi thriller "I Am Legend", and its expected to be his follow-up project once he wraps work on Sony's "Tonight, He Comes" superhero flick reports Ananova.

Based on the classic by Richard Matheson, and a post-apocalyptic New York. "I Am Legend" is about the last healthy man following the release of a virus that decimates the population. To survive, he must battle mutants that wreak havoc during the night.

Akiva Goldsman ("A Beautiful Mind", "The Da Vinci Code") is penning the adaptation which will be directed by Francis Lawrence ("Constantine"). Shooting is scheduled to begin in New York early next year.

'Legend' was originally to be made back in 1997 with Ridley Scott directing Arnold Schwarzenegger, but fell through due to budgetary reasons. Smith and director Michael Bay were attached in 2002 but it also didn't make any progress.