Turkey, scrambling to revive its ailing tourism sector, is pinning its hopes on Hollywood for support, namely that of Brad Pitt, star of the 2004 film “Troy,” among other blockbusters.

Ancient Troy — one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998 — is located in Turkey’s northwestern Canakkale province, also the theater of the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli. Despite its exceptional history, the region has lagged behind Turkey’s other top tourist attractions. Ankara believes the time has come to make a change.

Earlier this month, Culture and Tourism Minister Numan Kurtulmus declared that 2018 would be the “Year of Troy.” He said that contacts had been made with Pitt, who played the hero warrior Achilles in “Troy,” to make him the face of the promotional campaign. The initiative excited many, with one of Turkey’s most popular columnists, Hurriyet’s Ertugrul Ozkok, going so far as to call for changing Canakkale's name to Troy.

To former Tourism Minister Ahmet Tan, however, renaming Canakkale would be a tall order, given the government’s fixation on “the native and the national.” That said, maybe some backing from Pitt would be of use. Speaking to Al-Monitor, Tan said that the Tourism Ministry had allocated huge sums for promotion and recalled earlier efforts to enlist Hollywood stars for advertising campaigns.