Los Angeles, Feb 5 (IANS): Actress Nina Dobrev has joined Aaron Eckhart in action-thriller 'The Bricklayer', which will start next month in Europe.

'Cliffhanger' and 'Die Hard 2' filmmaker Renny Harlin is directing the movie, which The Expendables outfit Millennium Media is producing with Gerard Butler after both teamed up with Eckhart on the lucrative 'Has Fallen' franchise, reports deadline.com.

In 'The Bricklayer', someone is blackmailing the CIA by assassinating foreign journalists and making it look like the agency is responsible. As the world begins to unite against the US, the CIA must lure its most brilliant and rebellious operative out of retirement, forcing him to confront his checkered past while unraveling an international conspiracy.

The film will be shot at Millennium's Nu Boyana Greece studio and its Nu Boyana Bulgaria facility. Screenplay comes from Hanna Weg and Matt Johnson.

Producers are G-Base's Alan Siegel, Butler and Danielle Robinson; Eclectic Pictures' Heidi Jo Markel; and Millennium Media's Jeffrey Greenstein, Les Weldon, Jonathan Yunger, Yariv Lerner and Rob Van Norden. Avi Lerner, Trevor Short, Boaz Davidson and Tanner Mobley from Millennium are executive producers.

Bulgarian-born Canadian actress Dobrev is best known for her roles in the 'The Vampire Diaries', 'Degrassi: The Next Generation' and Summit's 'Perks of Being a Wallflower'. Recent work include Netflix's 'Love Hard' and 'Redeeming Love' while upcoming are Netflix's 'The Out-Law' and comedy 'The Reunion'.