Egyptian star Amr Waked (best known internationally for his performances in Salmon Fishing in the Yemen and Syriana) has joined the cast of the Weinstein Company/Netflix TV series collab, Marco Polo, which follows the travels of the 13th Century explorer.

Currently shooting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Waked joins star Lorenzo Richelmy, who is playing Marco Polo, as well as Benedict Wong, Zhu Zhu, Tom Wu, Remy Hii and Rick Yune.

The 10-episode drama was created by John Fusco, and focuses on the famed explorer’s journey that takes him to the center of a brutal war in 13th century China – “a world replete with astonishing martial arts, sexual intrigue, political skullduggery and spectacular battles.”

No word on what role exactly that Waked has signed up to play.

The actor (who’s also a producer) starred in Egypt’s official entry for Best Foreign Language Film Oscar consideration at the 86th Academy Awards – Ibrahim El Batout’s lauded drama Winter of Discontent.

Waked also co-produced the film through his Cairo-based company Zad Communication & Production, which is currently in production on El Batout’s next film – a Cairo-set action thriller titled The Cat, which centers on the very topical human organ trafficking in Egypt, with Amr Waked (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) also attached to star.

Waked will also soon appear in Luc Besson’s sci-fi actioner Lucy, alongside Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman, which Universal will release August 5 in the USA, giving American audiences their first good look at Egypt’s most popular actor.