Terminated marriage forces Schwarzenegger into a saddle

(REX FEATURES)

A troublesome divorce has hastened former action movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger's return to the silver screen.

The actor-turned-politician, right, is saddling up to shoot a Western, The Last Stand, after a sex scandal turned the one-time California governor into a figure of ridicule.

In May, Schwarzenegger announced that he was halting discussions over a new Terminator film and other Hollywood projects, in order to focus on personal matters.

The former bodybuilder's wife, Maria Shriver, has filed for divorce – citing irreconcilable differences – ending their 25-year marriage. Schwarzenegger, 63, had fathered a secret love child with one of his wife's longest-serving household servants, it emerged.

An unnamed movie executive told industry website Deadline Hollywood that the new film was "an old-fashioned Western, specifically designed for a 63-year-old broken-down guy with a moral decision.

"We always needed an iconic figure for it."

Shooting is due to start in September.

Representatives for Schwarzenegger and the Lionsgate studio behind the film declined to comment.

The Last Stand is due to be directed by South Korean Ji-woon Kim and will be released in 2012.

Before the scandal broke, Schwarzenegger had been also working on a film called Cry Macho, but production was put on hold.