Ron Howard is set to begin filming 'Inferno' in April 2015.

The much-anticipated new film will be the third part of Dan Brown's Robert Langdon series, following on from 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels and Demons', both of which were big successes at the box office.

Since then, Howard - one of Hollywood's most revered directors - helped create the acclaimed racing biopic 'Rush', which stars Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl and centres on the rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda during the 1976 Formula One motor-racing season.

Now, though, he has his attention fixed on 'Inferno', which is the most recent book in the Langdon series.

This means that producers of the film have avoided the temptation to adapt Dan Brown's 2009 novel 'The Lost Symbol' for the cinema.

The role of Langdon - a fictional Harvard University professor of religious iconology and symbology - is to be played by Hollywood icon Tom Hanks, who featured in the same role in the two earlier films.

The script for the eagerly-awaited flick is currently being penned by renowned screenwriter David Koepp, with filming set to begin in Italy.