Natalie Portman To Star In Braff 'Larges Ark'

Natalie Portman has been set to star in "Large's Ark," a Jersey Films drama that will mark the feature directorial debut of "Scrubs" star Zach Braff, reports Variety.

Braff is pulling triple duty on the film, as he wrote the script and will star alongside Portman. Shooting will begin in spring, when Braff's NBC series is on hiatus and after Portman completes work in the Anthony Minghella-directed "Cold Mountain."

"I play this guy who has been estranged from his family for 10 years, and comes home for the first time for his mother's funeral," Braff said. "He has lost every shred of who he was as a person, and the catalyst for his recovery is this young girl he meets when he returns. I always thought Natalie Portman would be perfect, but I never imagined that she would actually say yes."