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There May Be Two New Big Films About Moses

And Steven Spielberg has dropped out of one of them

by
Adam Chandler
March 15, 2013

As Passover approaches, we are getting word about a Tinseltown resurgence of interest in the biblical character Moses. So fixated is Hollywood on the Bible’s Lincoln that there are not just one, but two Moses-related projects threatening to be developed.

One is Warner Bros. Gods and Kings, which we’ve just learned had attracted the interest of director Steven Spielberg. It turns out the Spielberg is going to pass, leaving it open to newly-Oscared Ang Lee (Life of Pi) as a rumored successor. The other Moses flick would come from Fox Studios and may have director Ridley Scott (of Bladerunner and Kingdom of Heaven fame) at the helm.

Should we expect a traditional story? Will the 21st-century Moses be gay? How will his lisp translate to celluloid? There are too many questions to ask. Most importantly though, if there were to be two Moses, which two actors would you most want to see square off for the Academy Award?

A straw poll at the Tablet lunch table yielded these favorites: Morgan Freeman, Mark Ruffalo, James Cromwell, Ben Kingsley, Geoffrey Rush, and Tilda Swinton.

Adam Chandler was previously a staff writer at Tablet. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, Slate, Esquire, New York, and elsewhere. He tweets @allmychandler.