Arnold Schwarzenegger, 77, is the absolute spits of Santa with great big bushy beard-Kitty Chrisp-Entertainment – Metro

Arnold Schwarzenegger has been spotted in his new role as Santa Claus (Picture: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken on a new role in his 70s, and he’s suiting it.

The 77-year-old Terminator actor looked almost unrecognisable while strolling around New York City dressed head-to-toe as Santa Claus.

We’re used to the actor’s brown barnet, but he’s had a festive makeover and is now sporting a white beard and hair.

Grinning from ear to ear, Arnold wore a Paddington-esque red coat, a pom-pom-heavy beany hat, and tan corduroy trousers to channel the festive big dog for his new film, The Man With The Bag.

In a video on social media of Arnie in the costume, fans expressed concern as he was seen walking at a steady pace while being flanked by a number of security guards.

The former governor of California, who recently became a grandfather for the third time, previously strayed from his thriller roles in favour of a Christmas flick in the 1996 film Jingle All The Way.

The actor appeared to be spreading some festive cheer in New York City (Picture: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

It’s somewhat of a departure from his normal roles… (Picture: XNY/Star Max/GC Images)

In it he played a father who is on a mission to get his son a specific action man figurine for Christmas.

This new Arnie Christmas film will be directed by Adam Shankman, and is from a script by Allan Rice.

The plot will follow Arnie as Santa, who gets his bag of presents stolen, and resorts to plucking a former thief from his naughty list to help him get it back.

‘Along with his daughter, Santa, and a group of misfit elves, Vance will have to pull off the greatest heist of his life to save Christmas,’ the plot synopsis reads.

This will be Arnie’s first film role since Terminator: Dark Fate in 2019, but last year he appeared in a documentary about his life on Netflix.

Titled Arnold, the documentary follows his journey from bodybuilder to Hollywood actor to politician, and was met with rave reviews.

The actor last starred in a Christmas film in 1996 (Picture: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

He kind of suits it… (Picture: James Devaney/GC Images)

Earlier this year, Arnold revealed he had a pacemaker fitted having previously undergone three open heart surgeries.

The former bodybuilder joked he has a ‘machine part’ like his Terminator character, and confirmed he would be taking a break from his workouts.

Appearing on his Arnold’s Pump Club podcast, he said: ‘I had surgery to become a little bit more of a machine: I got a pacemaker.

‘I have to tell you, just saying this to all of you goes against so much of my upbringing in Austria, where nobody — ever — talked about medical issues. Everything related to healthcare was kept to yourself.

‘But I’ve gotten so many messages and emails from people who were born with a bicuspid aortic valve, like me, telling me that talking about my valve replacement surgeries has given them courage and hope to deal with their own.

‘So, since I know that going against my secretive instinct and being transparent helps people, what choice do I have?’

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