Shankar seems to be gearing up to make "Endhiran 2" a bigger and better project than its first instalment as the director is planning to rope in Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger for the Rajinikanth starrer.

The latest buzz is that Arnold has been approached by Shankar for "Endhiran 2". It is not clear whether the Hollywood star has accepted the movie. The actor's remuneration is being discussed at this stage, claim reports.

Contrary to the reports, Arnold is not playing the role of a baddie. Schwarzenegger will reportedly play the hero alongside Rajinikanth. The makers are planning to rope in a big actor from Bollywood to play the negative role.

It may be recalled that the names of Aamir Khan and Hrithik Roshan were doing the rounds fo the antagonist's character in the forthcoming flick.

The news of the Hollywood actor playing a role in Shankar's Tamil movie does not come as a surprise as he was the special guest at the audio launch function of the director's last film, "I", starring Vikram and Amy Jackson.

However, it was also reported that Deepika Padukone had been approached to play the female lead in "Endhiran 2". But now, it turns out that she is not part of the flick rather a big name from Bollywood has been approached to play Rajini's love interest.

In the first instalment, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan had paired up with Rajinikanth. Meanwhile, the pre-production works of "Endhiran 2" are in full swing even as Shankar is busy scouting locations for the shooting of the flick.

"Endhiran 2" will take off next year, once Rajinikanth wraps up his "Kabali".