Jon Stewart sets Gael Garcia Bernal to star in his directorial debut, 'Rosewater'

The pairing of political humorist Jon Stewart and overtly-political actor Gael Garcia Bernal is so perfect that it's almost a shock it's actually happening. Last March we learned that Stewart would be taking a 12-week summer hiatus from The Daily Show to film his directorial debut, Rosewater, based on BBC journalist Maziar Bahari's memoir, Then They Came For Me: A Family’s Story of Love, Captivity and Survival. Filming doesn't get underway for awhile yet, but Stewart knows he wants Bernal in the lead role of the tortured journo.

Bernal, who has starred in such political dramas as The Motorcyle Diaries and this year's terrific Chilean election film, No, has signed on to star in Rosewater, according to sources at The Wrap. The Mexican actor will play Bahari, a London journalist who spent 118 days in an Iranian prison after heading there to cover the Presidential election protests. Accused of being a spy, he was tortured and interrogated repeatedly. Blindfolded, the only distinct characteristic he can remember of his captor was that he smelled like rosewater. In a horrible bit of irony, it was Bahari's appearance on Stewart's show that his interrogators used as evidence he was a spy.

Stewart optioned the book a couple of years ago, and will produce along with providing the screenplay. During Stewart's break, his duties as anchor of the hit Comedy Central series will be covered by John Oliver.