Over the last few years we've seen faith-based films really secure a foothold in the Hollywood landscape. From small dramas like God's Not Dead to big studio films like Darren Aronofsky's Noah, the Bible has never been represented more on the big screen than it is today. And now one of the all-time great Biblical epics is getting a remake, with the trailer for Ben-Hur having arrived.
The trailer debuts just days after the first images of Jack Huston in the title role were released, promising swords, sandals, and one gigantic chariot race. Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) directs the adaptation of Lew Wallace's 1880 classic about Judah Ben-Hur, a Jewish prince in Roman-occupied Jerusalem who is betrayed by his childhood friend and sent into slavery for years. He would return in an attempt to exact revenge, but instead Ben-Hur finds redemption and a chance to lead his people to freedom.
While this trailer isn't likely to make anyone forget the Oscar-winning 1959 film with Charlton Heston, it's interesting to see this story presented as an unabashedly huge summer blockbuster. Whether or not this turns off the religious crowd, as it did with Noah, remains to be seen.
Also starring Toby Kebbell, Morgan Freeman, Nazanin Boniadi, Rodrigo Santoro, Moises Arias, Pilou Asbaek, and Ayelet Zurer, Ben-Hur opens August 12th.
