The Australian actor will play FBI agent Jim "Fitz" Fitzgerald, whose radical approach to criminal intelligence brought down Ted Kaczynski​, the notorious American recluse who killed three and injured another 23 in a bombing campaign from 1978 to 1995.

Worthington's character is described as one of the most decorated criminal profilers in the FBI's history. He and others persuaded the FBI director and the Attorney General to push The New York Times and Washington Post to publish the Unabomber's manifesto to see whether anyone recognised the writing style.

That led to a breakthrough when Kaczynski's estranged brother recognised rants about modern technology and phrases from letters sent to newspapers years earlier.

Paul Bettany​ (A Beautiful Mind, Vision in the Avengers movies) will play Kaczynski in the eight-episode series Manifesto.

Kaczynski was arrested at a remote cabin in Montana in 1996. After being convicted, he is serving four life sentences at a maximum security prison in Colorado.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Manifesto is being produced by Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti's Trigger Street and Lionsgate Television.

After Avatar, Terminator Salvation and Clash of the Titans, Worthington's most recent film in cinemas is Hacksaw Ridge. He was down to shoot three sequels to Avatar with James Cameron in New Zealand but the director has announced there will now be four - due out in 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2013.

Worthington also has the faith-based film The Shack opening in US cinemas in March. Centring on a grieving father who meets a mysterious trio who transform his understanding of tragedy, it also stars Octavia Spencer, Radha Mitchell and Tim McGraw.

And he has produced and starred in Hunter's Prayer, playing an assassin who is pursued across Europe with a young woman (Odeya Rush) he was assigned to kill.