Dreamboat Actor Set to Play Stephen Hawking

Red is not only the color of Eddie Redmayne's hair, but also the color that describes how hot the Les Misérables is following his star-making turn in the big-screen musical. And it seems the young actor — who has transformed himself into a target for the Tiger Beat set — might have booked his next role.

Redmayne, who's currently filming Jupiter Ascending alongside Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis, is set to be cast in another cosmology-centric film, Theory of Everything , which chronicles the life of Stephen Hawking. Yes, you heard that right — Redmayne, the newly crowned ginger god, will play the brilliant theoretical physicist.

Not quite the most obvious casting choice. For one, the role is a hefty one, and while Redmayne was undeniably impressive in Les Mis, he's a surprising choice considering the number of young heavyweight actors who would beg to play the ALS-plagued Brief History in Time author. (Even Mike Fleming of Deadline points to the role as being on similar to Daniel Day-Lewis' Academy Award-winning turn in My Left Foot.) And, to boot, Hawking is currently 71 years old — Redmayne stands at a spritely 31 years. But could Redmayne pull off a young Hawking, seeing as the movie will focus on his relationship with his wife? Let's take a look. Here is a young Hawking (at his 1965 wedding to Jane Wilde):

And here is Redmayne:

Perhaps, even if Kevin McHale seems more suited to Hawking than Redmayne's dreamboat. But it seems the Les Mis actor and the physicist have more in common than you think. After all, the ladies reportedly love Hawking too.

Images: Stephen Hawking, Getty Images