We're getting not one, but two new Clint Eastwood films this year, and today brings your first look at 'American Sniper,' something vastly different from 'Jersey Boys,' we assure you. It's been a bit of a passion project for star Bradley Cooper, and you can see a scruffed-up version of the normally clean-cut leading man in these new photos, which gives us our first glimpse at the awards season drama.

The photos premiered via USA Today, who also had the chance to speak with Cooper about the project, based on the best-selling autobiography by Navy SEAL Chris Kyle. Cooper says that he only had one conversation with him before Kyle was shot and killed at a gun range in Texas by a troubled Marine veteran:

It was a very quick conversation. But I did tell him how serious I was about making this movie. And he should just know that whatever fears he had about Hollywood, to just put them aside and trust me. That I was going to do everything I could to tell this story.

'American Sniper' follows the life of Kyle, who, having recorded the most sniper kills in U.S. military history from 1999 to 2009, was given the nickname of "The Devil" by his enemies and "The Legend" by his fellow Navy SEALs. Following the tragic events of 9/11, Kyle, who grew up riding in the rodeo and learning to shoot guns from his father, was sent to fight the War on Terror in Iraq, where he discovered his calling as a sniper. While at war, Kyle rescued a group of Marines under heavy fire, was shot twice, and dealt with the deaths of two of his closest friends. Upon returning home, he wrote and published his autobiography and found his life cut tragically short at the hands of a veteran shortly after.

Cooper stars as Kyle in the film alongside Sienna Miller, Luke Grimes, and Kyle Gallner. 'American Sniper' hits theaters in limited release on December 25 before expanding on January 16, 2015. Check out your first look below:

USA Today/Warner Bros.
USA Today/Warner Bros.
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USA Today/Warner Bros.
USA Today/Warner Bros.
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