NEW YORK, Aug. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Filming begins this week on "The Good Shepherd," starring Matt Damon ("The Bourne Identity," Academy Award(R) winner for "Good Will Hunting"), Angelina Jolie ("Mr. & Mrs. Smith," Academy Award(R) winner for "Girl, Interrupted"), and directed by Academy Award(R)-winning actor Robert De Niro ("Raging Bull," "A Bronx Tale," "Meet the Fockers"). Written by Eric Roth (Academy Award(R) winner for "Forrest Gump" and nominee for "The Insider"), "The Good Shepherd" is the story of the tumultuous early years of the Central Intelligence Agency as viewed through the prism of one man's life.

Starring in this epic drama set in the high stakes world of espionage, Matt Damon plays Edward Wilson, an exceptionally bright and talented son of privilege who is recruited from the campus of Yale University to join the Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA, at the beginning of World War II. Wilson's acute mind, spotless reputation and sincere belief in American values render him a prime candidate for a career in intelligence, as do his deeply embedded commitment to honor and quite secretive nature. As Wilson becomes a veteran operative in counter-intelligence during the Cold War, not even his wife Clover, played by Angelina Jolie, nor his beloved son Edward Jr., can divert him from a path that will force him to sacrifice everything in service to his country.

Robert De Niro also stars as General Bill Sullivan, the U.S. Army official who hand picks Wilson for the career in intelligence that will shape the world's political landscape. "The Good Shepherd" features a supporting cast that includes Academy Award(R) winner William Hurt ("Kiss of the Spider Woman," "The Village"), John Turturro ("O Brother, Where Art Thou?"; "Barton Fink"), Billy Crudup ("Almost Famous," "Big Fish"), Emmy Award winner Tammy Blanchard ("Life with Judy Garland"), Michael Gambon ("Gosford Park," "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azbakan"), Alec Baldwin ("The Aviator," "Glengarry Glen Ross"), Academy Award(R) winner Timothy Hutton ("Ordinary People," "Kinsey"), Keir Dullea ("2001: A Space Odyssey"), as well as up-and-coming young actors Eddie Redmayne, Lee Pace and Gabriel Macht.

"The Good Shepherd" is produced by James G. Robinson for Morgan Creek Productions and by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal for Tribeca Productions. Guy McElwaine, Francis Ford Coppola, David Robinson and Chris Brigham serve as executive producers. The film is a Morgan Creek and Tribeca Production and will be released by Universal Pictures domestically, with Morgan Creek handling international rights.

The film's behind-the-scenes team includes Academy Award(R)-winning cinematographer Robert Richardson ("The Aviator," "JFK"), Academy Award(R)- winning costume designer Ann Roth ("The English Patient," "The Hours"), Oscar(R)-nominated production designer Jeannine Oppewall ("Seabiscuit," "LA Confidential") and editor Tariq Anwar (Academy Award(R) nominee for "American Beauty").

The Good Shepherd will be filmed in New York City, Washington D.C., London and the Dominican Republic.

Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is part of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80%-owned by General Electric, with 20% controlled by Vivendi Universal.

Source: Universal Pictures