Universal Pictures has signed a deal with screenwriter Andrea Berloff, who will script "The Legend of Conan," an action film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. The deal brings back both the actor and the movie to Universal.

The role is the one that launched Schwarzenegger's acting career in 1982, in the original Conan film by Universal, called "Conan the Barbarian." The film was based on stories by Robert E. Howard, a 1930s pulp fiction writer. "Conan the Barbarian" tells the story of a young barbarian who seeks revenge for the death of his father.

Deadline reported the story earlier today and spoke to Malmberg. As quoted in the article, Malmberg said, “We’re thrilled to be working with Chris and his creative team and to see Arnold Schwarzenegger return in the role that started his career."

The Deadline article also reported that "Morgan called Berloff' 'an amazing writer who can juggle masculine grittiness with extreme emotional depth. Her take on Conan is powerful and genuine and would make Robert E. Howard proud.'"

Berloff adapted the French action film "Sleepless Night" for Warner Bros. and also wrote "Straight Outta Compton" for New Line Cinema. Other scripts Berloff has written include "World Trade Center" and the short film "Domestic." She is also writing the screenplay for the upcoming Will Smith film "The Legend of Cain," a take on the classic myth of Cain and Abel.

Fredrik Malmberg, the CEO of Paradox Entertainment, and writer/producer Chris Morgan will produce the film.

According to the Deadline article, the film picked up in preproduction "largely because of the passion of Chris Morgan, the scribe/producer who has minted money at the studio writing Fast & The Furious films. He was the one who decided to draw a parallel right back to the original raw, violent Conan films, which ended with the image of the barbarian king sitting atop his throne. The new film is about his efforts to stay there and the final cycle of a life spent obliterating anyone who got in his way."

Great action scenes can make a movie memorable for decades. For tips on writing action scenes, see Cameron Cubbison's ScreenCraft post: How to Craft Great Action Sequences