Steven Spieldberg plans to make Mark Rylance a big star, or at least a big friendly giant. Deadline reports the actor will play the title role in the director's upcoming film The BFG.

Although his Cold War thriller St. James Place is currently filming, the prolific director is always looking ahead to his next project which, in this case, is an adaptation of Roald Dahl's 1982 children's book about a young girl named Sophie who befriends the BFG. After the two team up they decide to help capture all the bad giants in an effort to keep England safe.

“As I witnessed on stage, Mark Rylance is a transformational actor,” Spielberg said in a statement. “I am excited and thrilled that Mark will be making this journey with us to Giant Country. Everything about his career so far is about making the courageous choice and I’m honored he has chosen The BFG as his next big screen performance.”

The BFG is scheduled to stomp into theaters on July 1, 2016.