MGM is going back to its roots with a remake of the classic film Ben Hur. The project is moving rapidly, as they have already signed on Keith Clarke (The Way Back) to write the screenplay and Sean Daniel and Joni Levin to produce.
Although the 1952 classic focused on the feud between Judah (Charlton Heston) and Messala (Stephen Boyd), this time around the film will focus more on the tale of Christ. The modern day Ben Hur will be more faithful to the original book it was once inspired by: the 1880 Lew Wallace novel Ben-Hur: A Tale Of The Christ.
MGM has emerged from bankruptcy and is raising new funding after Skyfall crossed $1 billion worldwide gross and The Hobbit heads to the $900 million mark. In the past, MGM released the 1959 Ben-Hur, as well as the 1925 silent film Ben-Hur: A Tale Of The Christ.
