Los Angeles  - Antonio Banderas is to star in offbeat detective movie The Big Bang, in which he will play a gnarly Los Angeles private eye on the search for a stripper with a surprising secret.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the plot revolves around the missing stripper's ties to an ageing billionaire looking to perfect the nuclear physics equivalent of the Big Bang.

Banderas most recently completed a starring role in Woody Allen's as-yet-untitled next film. (dpa)