Ali G to star as Sherlock Holmes

Sacha Baron Cohen and Will Ferrell will star in a Hollywood comedy based on the tales of Sherlock Holmes.

Cohen, best known for playing comic characters Ali G and Borat, will play the legendary fictional detective in the as-yet untitled film.

Ferrell has been cast as his crime-solving partner Dr Watson.

Columbia Pictures co-president Matt Tolmach said: "Just the idea of Sacha and Will as Sherlock Holmes and Watson makes us laugh."

"They are two of the funniest and most talented guys on the planet, and having them take on these two iconic characters is frankly hilarious," he added.

Producers Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller, who worked with the duo on the 2006 hit film Talladega Nights, will produce the film.

The new Sherlock Holmes film is being scripted by comedy writer Etan Cohen, who worked on Ben Stiller's forthcoming movie Tropic Thunder.

Baron Cohen, who recently starred in Sweeney Todd, is making a film about his comic character Bruno, which is due out in the US next May.

Will Ferrell is working alongside British star Anna Friel in comic adventure Land of the Lost, which is lined up for release in July 2009.