The Juno star's performance as an abusive music instructor in the 2014 drama won him the Best Supporting Actor Oscar at this year's (15) Academy Awards and now he has signed on to join the cast of Chazelle's forthcoming musical, La La Land.

His Whiplash co-star Miles Teller had previously been in talks to take on the male lead, opposite Harry Potter's Emma Watson, but they both dropped out and now Simmons will feature alongside Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, who will play two aspiring artists who fall in love while trying to find fame in Los Angeles.

Production is expected to get underway later this year (15), ahead of a July, 2016 release, according to The Hollywood Reporter.