Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan
Pictured: Salman Khan and Hrithik RoshanVarinder Chawla

Contrary to previous reports, latest buzz suggests that Hrithik Roshan will be a part of the cast of Race 3 and not Salman Khan. It has been reported that the Kaabil actor is being considered for the male lead role in the third installment of the franchise.

As reported, Hrithik will have much free time in hand in between the release of Kaabil and the start of shooting for Krrish 4. On the other side, Salman's schedule appears to be quite packed with the shooting of Tubelight that will be followed by Tiger Zinda Hai.

"There's still time for Hrithik to start work on Krrish 4 and he is through with Kaabil after January 2017. Race 3 could well be next," DNA quoted a source as saying.

Explaining the reason behind Salman not being part of Race 3 cast, the source added, "He needs to have dates free. If it was only Tubelight, it would be understandable. But Salman has also signed Tiger Zinda Hai, which could keep him occupied through 2017. And if he ends up picking Dabangg 3 for Eid 2018, Race 3 will only arrive by 2018-end. So he might not be picked."

The report also said that after the failure of Mohenjo Daro, Hrithik has decided to do more movies per year and the action thriller genre very much suits the actor. However, there has not been any confirmation regarding the cast of Race 3 as of now.

Hrithik's Kaabil is slated to be released on January 26, 2017 along with Shah Rukh Khan starrer Raees. This will be another big box office clash. Hrithik's last release Mohenjo Daro had clashed with Akshay Kumar's Rustom and the former was washed away in the clash.