Matt Smith lands role as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho musical

The Doctor Who star will play a sadistic investment banker in a new adaptation of the infamous Bret Easton Ellis novel

Matt Smith will appear in American Psycho (Getty Images)

Doctor Who star Matt Smith is to appear in a musical adaptation of the Bret Easton Ellis novel American Psycho on the London stage.

The actor is said to have begun rehearsals for the production today, which is due to open at the Almeida Theatre in Islington in December.

Smith will play Patrick Bateman, a fictional 1980s Wall Street investment banker who engages in sadistic, misogynistic fantasies involving rape, mutilation and torture.

Christian Bale famously portrayed Bateman in the film adaptation of the book in 2000.

The show has been described as a satirical commentary on the materialism and greed that marked the eighties. If it gains critical acclaim, it will transfer to the West End, and eventually to Broadway.

American producers are already said to be involved in the musical, according to the Daily Mail.

Smith's casting has been kept secret, with cast members only finding out at rehearsals today.

He has previously appeared on stage in The History Boys, That Face and Swimming With Sharks, but has never starred in a musical before.

The 30-year-old actor has just finished filming his final scenes as the Time Lord for the Doctor Who Christmas special.

The actor stepped down as the eleventh incarnation of the Doctor in June to pursue other projects.

American Psycho will open officially from 12 December, with previews from 3 December.