Hollywood superstar Mel Gibson plans to return to Scotland next year to make another multi-million-pound movie.

Discussions are already under way for the big-budget film to be made on location in the north-east of Scotland.

Oscar-winning Gibson, 45, will star in the movie for his Los Angles company, Icon, with production expected to begin early in the summer.

Set in the 1920s and 30s, the period drama was to have been filmed in America, but finding locations in New England and Nova Scotia has proved near impossible in the 21st century.

So Gibson turned to Scotland to find the perfect settings around Aberdeenshire and the north-east coastal villages.

Yesterday Kevin Cowle, of Scottish Screen, said: "I can confirm discussions are under way for Mel Gibson to make another film in Scotland.

"Like all multi-million-pound movies there is always a degree of confidentiality in the early stages so I am afraid there is not very much more I can say at the moment. But the prospect of such a movie being made is most welcome."

The film could generate a huge spin-off for the north-east.

Cowle said: "The ball park figure we use as to how much money a movie will generate into the local economy if it is filmed on location is one third of the total budget.

"Although film companies do bring all their own heads of department, they hire production, transport and construction staff locally. The also hire locals as extras, rent locations sites and need local accommodation for the duration of filming.

"We estimate that, for every £10m spent on a movie, over £3m can be injected into the local economy."

The film will be Gibson’s third in Scotland.

The actor’s love affair with the country began when he made his first movie in Scotland in 1990 and co-starred with Glenn Close in Hamlet. Part of the Shakespearean production was filmed at Dunnottar Castle, near Stonehaven.

Six years ago he returned for two months to film his blockbuster, Braveheart, on location in Lochaber. The film won him an Oscar for Best Director and grossed more than $75m at the box office.

While working on the William Wallace epic he brought his wife, Robyn, and seven children with him.

The family rented the eight-bedroomed Fassfern mansion house on the shores of Loch Eil, where Bonnie Prince Charlie slept the night after raising his standard at Glenfinnan for the Jacobite rebellion in 1745.

While based at Fassfern, Gibson spent much of his free time touring Scotland and searching for possible locations for future films.

A spokeswoman for Icon Productions said: "We would not comment of a film being made in Scotland until an announcement has been made."