Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen, 41, quit the biopic project this summer following clashes over the script with band members Brian May, 66, and Roger Taylor, 64.

But now producers are keen to bag Radcliffe, 24, and are prepared to offer him big money to tempt him to play the gay singer, whose string of hits included camp rock anthem I Want To Break Free.

If he takes the part, Hollywood insiders predict it will be the actor’s biggest pay day since he played Harry Potter in the successful movies.

A source told the Daily Star last night: “Daniel has been told the part is his if he wants it."

“Despite his youth, Daniel impressed movie bosses with his portrayal of gay poet Allen Ginsburg in this year’s movie Kill Your Darlings.

“Plus, he’s closer in height to Freddie than Sacha, who’s much taller. Daniel can really sing, too.”

Radcliffe would have no issues playing a gay character.

He is famously a gay rights advocate and also filmed a gay sex scene in Kill Your Darlings.

Sacha reporedly withdrew from the project because he felt it was not showing enough of flamboyant Mercury’s extravagant lifestyle.

EXCLUSIVE: Hot off directing the musical Sunshine On Leith, British actor-turned-helmer Dexter Fletcher has closed a deal to helm the movie on rock supergroup Queen, with frontman Freddie Mercury to be played Ben Whishaw. GK Films’ Graham King is producing, and Sony Pictures has first crack at the film. This has been a passion project for King for several years, and it started with Sacha Baron Cohen attached to play Mercury, the singular-voiced frontman. Fletcher, who’s repped by WME and Independent, made his directorial debut with Wild Bill before directing Sunshine On Leith, a musical based on the Proclaimers songbook. Before that, Fletcher became a familiar face acting in films that include Guy Ritchie’s Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels. Whishaw has been rumored to be getting the Mercury role for some time.

I’m told that Fletcher has been meeting the band and getting a feel for the Queen story, and that the intention is for the movie to get up and running next year regardless of whether Sony steps up. With the band’s songs part of the package, the pic will tell the formative coming-of-age story of the group, culminating in Queen headlining Live Aid in 1985. Queen’s performance is considered one of rock’s all-time great concert appearances. Mercury died November 24, 1991, of complications from AIDS, and while his death helped to remove the stigma of AIDS sufferers prevalent at that time and particularly in the rock music industry, Mercury’s last days won’t be the subject of the film. Script is by Peter Morgan and King’s producing with Tim Headington and Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal’s Tribeca Productions, and Queen Films. Among the tunes that are in the rights package are “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions,” “Another One Bites The Dust” and “You’re My Best Friend.”

Whishaw, who got his breakthrough in the adaptation of the serial killer novel Perfume, is playing Herman Melville in the Ron Howard-directed The Heart Of The Sea, the Warner Bros film that stars Chris Hemsworth about the actual whale attack that spawned Melville’s Moby Dick. He starred in Cloud Atlas and played Q in the 007 film Skyfall and will reprise that role in the next installment. He’s repped by CAA and Hamilton Hodell.

EXCLUSIVE: It’s back to the drawing board for a director on the untitled movie about Queen frontman Freddie Mercury that Graham King’s GK Films is making at Sony. King has quietly parted ways with British actor-turned-helmer Dexter Fletcher, who got the job after directing the musical Sunshine On Leith. I’ve heard that the two didn’t see eye to eye on what will be an R rated pic about Mercury, who’ll be played by Ben Whishaw. The actor is still firmly in place I’m told. He stepped in after Sacha Baron Cohen dropped out in what has been a struggle to get the film just right before starting production.

They went as far as starting soft pre-production on a film that was skedded to begin shooting in the summer. they hope to keep close to that start date and name a new helmer shortly. With the band’s songs part of the package, the pic will tell the formative coming-of-age story of the group, culminating in Queen headlining Live Aid in 1985 and not on Mercury’s death November 24, 1991, of complications from AIDS. Script is by Peter Morgan and King’s producing with Tim Headington and Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal’s Tribeca Productions, and Queen Films. Among the tunes that are in the rights package are Bohemian Rhapsody, We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions, Another One Bites The Dust and You’re My Best Friend.

Sacha Baron Cohen will write, direct, and star in Freddie Mercury biopic

On-again, off-again project is back on after Cohen settles his differences with surviving members of Queen

An on-again, off-again Freddie Mercury biopic starring Sacha Baron Cohen appears to be on again. Last year, it was reported that Cohen had left the project due to disagreements with the surviving members of Queen over the film’s direction and tone. Now, though, Queen manager Jim Beach has revealed that Cohen is back on board with the project, and not only will he depict the legendary singer, he’s also writing and directing the film himself.

“You have probably followed the saga of the famous Queen-Freddie Mercury biopic which has been developing in Hollywood for the last seven years,” Beach said during a speech at the Artist and Manager Awards this week. “An important breakthrough is that we have now managed to persuade Sacha Baron Cohen to write, produce and direct this movie, and he has also agreed to star.”

Yesterday, it was reported that Queen's manager Jim Beach confirmed the “important breakthrough” of Baron Cohen's renewed involvement after he received the Peter Grant accolade for Outstanding Achievement at the Artist and Manager Awards in London last week. However, now May has taken to his official website to confirm that this was a "joke".

May writes: "[There was] a small joke that Jim threw in during his acceptance speech. He said that, in response to [inquiries] about the progress on the Freddie feature film, that Sacha Baron Cohen had been re-engaged to write, produce, and direct the film, as well as starring in all four major roles! I’m afraid some folks might have taken it seriously!"