(CNN) - Clint Eastwood has picked real-life heroes Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos and Spencer Stone to portray themselves in his next film.
The three men rose to international acclaim when they helped stop an attempted terror attack on a Paris-bound train in 2015.
A French national and a Briton helped them subdue a gunman who had opened fire.
Eastwood's film, The 1517 to Paris, will tell the story of the three Americans, starting in childhood and showing their friendship leading up to the thwarted attack.
Eastwood and the studio had apparently made choices for the roles before deciding at the last minute to have the men play themselves.
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