First Hannibal Lecter, and now the Bible’s oldest man

He’s a bit young for the part, but Anthony Hopkins has landed his next intriguing role: as the oldest man in the Bible.

The English Oscar winner, best known for his turn as Hannibal Lecter in “Silence of the Lambs,” has signed on to play Methuselah in upcoming epic “Noah,” according to a tweet posted Monday by Darren Aronofsky, the film’s director.

Hopkins, 74, is 895 years younger than the character he’ll play, but the actor strikes us as up to the task. (Well, him or Meryl Streep.) His main function in the story is — spoiler alert! — to die, unfortunately, a passing that convinces God to delay history’s worst flood so that Methuselah’s grandson, Noah, can mourn for seven days before setting sail on his ark.

Hopkins’ arrival marks the latest addition to what’s shaping up to be a pretty interesting cast — in addition to Oscar winners Russell Crowe (as the title character) and Jennifer Connelly, former “Harry Potter” star Emma Watson is also (rimshot, please) on board.

Set for a 2014 release, “Noah” marks the first big-budget effort by Aronofsky, whose most recent films were “Black Swan” and “The Wrestler.”