Steven Spielberg is looking to adapt a great book for his next film — in fact, the great book. The filmmaker is reportedly eyeing a Warner Bros project called “Gods and Kings,” which chronicles the life of Moses as told in the Old Testament of the Bible.
Movieline reports that Spielberg is very interested in directing “Gods and Kings,” which follows Moses from a baby in a basket on the river, through parting the Red Sea and leading the Jews out of Egypt, to receiving the Ten Commandments.
The project would not be the first for Spielberg with a Jewish theme. The director helmed “Munich,” the story of the 1972 massacre of Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. More famously, Spielberg received an Oscar for best director for his movie “Schindler’s List.”
MEL GIBSON’S MACCABEE FILM DRAWS IRE
Coincidently, Mel Gibson is also attached to an Old Testament project for Warner Bros. The disgraced actor is reported to have the first option to direct a film about Jewish warrior Judah Maccabee, who is celebrated during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. According to Deadline, Gibson has long wanted to make a movie about Maccabee and discussions of the project were going on in 2006, when he went on an anti-Semitic rant during a drunk driving arrest.
Gibson’s attachment to the project has drawn significant opposition from Jewish groups. But Gibson has gone biblical in his work before, directing “The Passion of the Christ.” Coincidentally, Maccabee happens to have been a cousin of William Wallace, the Scottish liberator Gibson played in “Braveheart.”
Whether Spielberg directs “Gods and Kings” will depend largely on his schedule, Movieline reports. He is currently filming “Lincoln,” which stars Daniel Day-Lewis as the 16th president. His movie “War Horse” will be released on Dec. 25 and is already getting Oscar buzz.