CAST FOR THE KICK: Sonny Bill Williams will be played by Xavier Horan.

CAST FOR THE KICK: Dan Carter will be played by Josh McKenzie.

New Zealand-born actor David de Lautour has been cast as All Black Stephen Donald in The Kick, a TV ONE drama on the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Plucked from whitebaiting after injuries to the original selections and wearing a rugby jersey several sizes too small, the man nicknamed Beaver landed "the kick" in the nail-biting 8-7 cup final win over France.

Based in Los Angeles, de Lautour has acted in United States television shows such as Hart of Dixie, Mom, Once Upon A Time, NCIS: Los Angeles and Beauty and the Beast. He will return to New Zealand for the role.

"Stephen Donald's kick is an iconic moment in All Blacks history, and as a huge rugby fan, it's an honour to be playing an All Black such as Stephen," he said.

De Lautour was a natural choice, said executive producer Philip Smith, of Great Southern Television (Agent Anna, Eating Media Lunch, The Cult).

"David brings serious international acting chops to a role that's complex and emotional," he said.

"We are lucky to have an actor with this range to bring Stephen's story to life and are also pleased to have Stephen Donald himself on board as a consultant on the project."

Tim Foley (Nothing Trivial, Blue Rose) will star as All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, Tim Gordon (District 9, Home By Christmas) as coach Graham Henry, Josh McKenzie (Shortland Street, Go Girls) as first five-eighth Dan Carter and Xavier Horan (Shortland Street) as midfielder Sonny Bill Williams.

The Kick looks at events through the eyes of Donald, who got called into the All Blacks at the eleventh hour.

When he ran on to the field, the country collectively held its breath. His previous displays had led to him being dropped for the World Cup.

What resulted was a kick that won New Zealand the cup for the first time in 24 years, and a legend was born.

Production starts on Sunday.

CAST LIST:



Stephen Donald - David de Lautour.

Richie McCaw - Tim Foley.

Graham Henry - Tim Gordon.

Dan Carter - Josh McKenzie.

Sonny Bill Williams - Xavier Horan.

Steve Hansen - Geoff Dolan.

Piri Weepu - Troy Kingi.

Richard Kahui - Clinton Randell.

Mils Muliaina - Joe Naufahu.

Ma'a Nonu - Matt Renata.

Wayne Smith - Eryn Wilson.

Ian Foster - Ross Anderson.

Jimmy Cowan - Luke Thompson.

Andrew Hore - Jonathan Hodge.

Ali Williams - Aaron Cortesi.

Jerome Kaino - TK Tuhaka.

Kieran Read - Aaron Jackson.

Colin Slade - Kirk Bremner.

Aaron Cruden - Jordan Selwyn.

Conrad Smith - Harry Summerfield.

Andy Ellis - Dean Curtis.

Brad Thorn - Brad Johnson.