Tom Cruise has officially signed on to star in an upcoming adaptation of the Warner Bros. Pictures sci-fi project Yukikaze. The film will be the big screen adaptation of the novel of the same name written by Japanese author Chohei Kambayashi.

The official plot description of the novel is as follows:

More than thirty years ago, a hyper-dimensional passageway suddenly appeared over the continent of Antarctica. Fighters from the mysterious alien force known as the JAM poured through the passage, the first wave an attempted terrestrial invasion. Their ferocity was unquestionable, their aim unknown. Humanity, united by a common enemy, managed to repel the invaders, chasing them back through the passageway to the strange planet nicknamed “Fairy.”

The task of finishing the battle was given to the newly formed FAF, a combat force created to go to Fairy and eliminate the JAM bases once and for all. Now, in the midst of a war with no end in sight, Second Lieutenant Rei Fukai carries out his missions in the skies over Fairy. Attached to Tactical Combat and Surveillance Unit 3 of the Special Air Force, his duty is to gather information on the enemy and bring it back to base—no matter the human cost. His only constant companion in this lonely task is his fighter plane, the sentient FFR-31 Super Sylph, call sign: Yukikaze.

The novel has already been adapted once when it was made into a five episode Japanese direct-to-video anime series. It originally ran from  August 28, 2002 to August 25, 2005. The series is notable for its air combat scenes, which were created with the help of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. The JASDF worked with the Gonzo production team by recording actual sounds of the F-15J Eagle and running test flights at Komatsu Air Base, and having discussions on air combat tactics. Yukikaze has twice won the Tokyo Anime Award for Original Video Animation in 2003 and 2006.

There is no word of who else is considered for roles in the film or a projected release date.