Ridley Scott’s ‘Exodus’ with Christian Bale gets a title change

As one Biblical epic sets sail (so to speak) in theaters this weekend, news out of Las Vegas' CinemaCon is that another has undergone a title change.

Ridley Scott's “Exodus” starring Christian Bale is now known as “Exodus: Gods and Kings,” a combination of a similar Warner Bros. project's title (which Steven Spielberg and Ang Lee were circling at one point) and “Exodus.” The studio could not clear the rights for “Exodus” alone, I'm told, because MGM owns it in perpetuity.

Bale will star as Moses in the film. Last year he told HitFix to expect “shocking stuff” from the film. “It's an intriguing piece, because it's very few people that I've met that have actually read the Torah, the Pentateuch, the five books of Moses, all the way through,” he said. “Most people read snippets. If you read it all the way through, it's harsh. It's really 'Old Testament.' And violence in the extreme. He was not a man of any half measures whatsoever.”

The actor is coming off a Best Actor Oscar nomination for David O. Russell's “American Hustle” and also appeared last year in Scott Cooper's “Out of the Furnace.” He also has Terrence Malick's “Knight of Cups” on the horizon.

“Exodus Gods and Kings” is set for release on Dec. 12.

×