Dwayne Johnson and David Letterman to produce Andy Kaufman documentary

Dwayne Johnson and David Letterman are producing a feature documentary about late comedian Andy Kaufman.

The documentary - produced by Letterman's Worldwide Pants Incorporated and Johnson and Dany Garcia's Seven Bucks Productions - is to be directed by Finders Keepers filmmaker Clay Tweel.

"I've always loved Andy because he was able to elicit such emotional reactions to his performances by using both the poignant and the absurd to keep his audience off balance," the director explained of the actor and comedian in a statement. "I hope we can honor his legacy in that way with our film."

The feature has been officially authorised by the late comedian's estate and the team will have access to Kaufman's family, archives and private recordings from the Kaufman estate, and archival material from the estate of the stand-up's longtime manager, George Shapiro.

Kaufman's nephew and executive producer Tyler Kaufman added, "His work is as vibrant today as ever, and we're thrilled to join this filmmaking team in bringing viewers a very intimate and comprehensive look into his life and career."

Kaufman was best known for his unique stand-up shows and strange and often polarising performance art stunts. He also appeared regularly on Saturday Night Live and Late Night with David Letterman and played Latka Gravas in the TV show Taxi.

He died of lung cancer in May 1984 at the age of 35. He was portrayed by Jim Carrey in 1999's Man on the Moon.

A release date for the documentary is yet to be announced.