Entertainment
Ridley Scott’s Controversial Biblical Epic Joins a New Streamer
The four-time Academy Award-nominated director Ridley Scott will return to the big screen in 2026, bringing to life his next feature project, the science fiction epic The Dog Stars. Starring the likes of Margaret Qualley, Josh Brolin, and Guy Pearce, the film is the latest Scott movie following the underwhelming legacy sequel Gladiator II, which failed to hit its $500 million box-office target and earned only a single Academy Award nomination for Best Costume Design. A divisive entry in the great filmmaker’s catalog, Gladiator II wasn’t quite as controversial as another of Scott’s historical epics, one about to join a new streamer this December.
As of December 1, you’ll be able to catch Scott’s 2014 biblical epic, Exodus: Gods and Kings, on Starz. A reimagining of the biblical tale of Moses (played by Christian Bale in the movie), the film faced severe backlash for its apparent “whitewashing” of history and other historical and biblical inaccuracies. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Exodus: Gods and Kings has just 29% from critics and 35% from audiences, with the site’s consensus reading, “While sporadically stirring, and suitably epic in its ambitions, Exodus: Gods and Kings can’t quite live up to its classic source material.” A synopsis for Exodus: Gods and Kings reads:
“Egyptian Princes Moses (Christian Bale) and Ramses (Joel Edgerton) are raised together as brothers. When Ramses becomes pharaoh, Moses is his most-trusted adviser. However Moses soon discovers his Hebrew parentage, and Ramses banishes him to the desert — often a death sentence. But God has a mission for Moses: Free the Israelites from slavery. Moses returns from exile and demands that Ramses let his people go, but the arrogant ruler is unmoved, leading to a battle of divine wills.”
How Did ‘Exodus: Gods and Kings’ Perform at the Box Office?
Scott’s movies are no strangers to impressive box office runs, but how does Exodus: Gods and Kings compare to his other great triumphs? Produced for a reported $140 million, this biblical tale only managed a global haul of $268 million, split between $65 million in domestic revenue and a further $264 million from overseas markets. The film opened in U.S. theaters in December 2014 as the weekend’s highest-grossing film, but quickly dropped to fourth in the ranks on its second weekend.
Exodus: Gods and Kings will be available to stream on Starz this December. Make sure to stay tuned to Collider for more streaming stories.
- Release Date
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December 12, 2014
- Runtime
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150minutes
