John Carney will be stepping behind the camera to bring the story of the Bee Gees to life.

The director has replaced 'Belfast' auteur Kenneth Branagh as the director of the project, with Branagh bowing out due to other commitments.

Carney is no stranger to depicting music on film, with the director best-known for his work on 'Once' and 'Sing Street'.

The film will be produced by Hollywood super producer Graham King, the brains behind Oscar-winning hits such as 'The Departed', 'Hugo' and 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.

'Gladiator' and 'The Aviator' screenwriter John Logan is on script duties, taking over from Ben Elton.

The film currently doesn't have a release date, but with a change in director so early on in pre-production, this would imply Paramount are keen to get the project off the ground.

Carney's most recent work was the Amazon series 'Modern Love'.

The Bee Gees join the likes of Elton John, Queen, Elvis and Madonna who have either had or actively had movies about them produced.

A film about the Bee Gees will have a massive built-in audience; sales of their albums have been placed at over 220 million worldwide.

The group are perhaps best known for their contributions to the 'Saturday Night Fever' soundtrack, with their work on the album helping the film become a cultural sensation.

The album spent 24 weeks at number one in the United States and 18 weeks at number one in the UK.

Barry Gibb has an executive producer credit on the film and is said to be "very involved" with the project.

No casting news for the project as of yet, but with an Oscar-winning producer and established director like Carney on board, casting should fall into place fairly soon.