Antonio Banderas could soon be unleashing his artistic skills as Pablo Picasso in 33 Dias (33 Days).

The Spanish star is said to be in the frame to play the late artist in Carlos Saura's upcoming drama, reported Variety.

Picasso "is a character that has pursued me for a long time and I always rejected. He deserves a lot of respect because I am from Malaga, and I was born four blocks from where he was born," the actor told Spanish newspaper El Pais.

Carlos' bi-lingual film refers to the 33 days the painter spent working on his masterpiece mural Guernica, and the emotional turmoil he went through to try and capture his reaction to the destruction of the Basque town by the Nazi Luftwaffe during the Spanish civil war in 1937.

The film could also focus on Picasso's relationship with his lover, French artist Dora Maar.

Filming is expected to begin next summer in Paris and Guernica.

It would be another real-life role for Antonio, who appeared in Steven Soderbergh's Haywire and Pedro Almodovar's The Skin I Live In. He is apparently in talks to play Cuban leader Fidel Castro in biopic Castro's Daughter.