The King of Kings (1927) |
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| Director(s) | Cecil B. DeMille |
| Producer(s) | Cecil B. DeMille |
| Top Genres | Drama, Historical, Silent Films |
| Top Topics | Bible, Religious |
Featured Cast of The King of Kings See More »
H.B. Warner
(as Jesus, the Christ)
Dorothy Cumming
(as Mary, the mother)
Joseph Schildkraut
(as Judas Iscariot)
James Neill
(as James, brother of John)
Robert Edeson
(as Matthew, the publican)
Charles Belcher
(as Philip)
Sam De Grasse
(as Pharisee)
Victor Varconi
(as Pontius Pilate, govern...)
The King of Kings Overview:
The King of Kings (1927) was a Silent Films - Historical Film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and produced by Cecil B. DeMille.
The King of Kings BlogHub Articles:
Silents are Golden: A Closer Look At – The King of Kings (1927)
Silents are Golden: A Closer Look At – The King of Kings (1927) In the mid-1920s, after being known primarily for melodramas and light comedies with battle-of-the-sexes themes, famed director Cecil B. DeMille was starting to move in a more “epic” direction. Being interested in religious the... Read full article
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The King of Kings Quotes:
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The King of Kings Facts
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While Cecil B. DeMille was shooting the Crucifixion scene, pioneering director D.W. Griffith visited the set, and the two talked for a while. Just before DeMille got ready to shoot the next scene, he impulsively handed Griffith the megaphone and said, "You shoot this". Griffith then shot a scene of a group of Christ's persecutors gathered around the foot of the Cross.
Cecil B. DeMille did not want to take any chances with the film. His two stars, H.B. Warner and Dorothy Cumming, were required to sign agreements which prohibited them from appearing in film roles that might compromise their "holy" screen images for a five-year period. DeMille also ordered them not to be seen doing any "un-Biblical" activities during the film's shooting. These activities included attending ball games, playing cards, frequenting night clubs, swimming, and riding in convertibles.
After considering Seena Owen, Gloria Swanson, Gertrude Lawrence, Vilma Bánky and Raquel Meller for the role of Mary Magdelene, Cecil B. DeMille chose Jacqueline Logan after she told him, "I don;t want to play her as a bad woman, but as a woman who doesn't know the difference between right and wrong."
During the shoot H.B. Warner was driven to the set in a closed car with the blinds down, wore a black veil when he left the car for the set, and ate alone. The pressures of playing Jesus ultimately had an effect on Warner and resurrected his former drinking problem.
Cecil B. DeMille intended that the role of the Jesus Christ go to J.B. Warner, a handsome and popular actor in westerns at the time. By the time production began, Warner had passed away of tuberculosis at age 29. Instead, H.B. Warner (Henry B. Warner) was cast as Jesus. Contrary to popular misconception, the two were not actually brothers. According to an in-depth article on J.B. Warner "Classic Images" by Grange B. McKinney, the two were not even related. J.B.'s real name was James B. Tobias, and he adopted the surname of Warner after H.B. Warner's family took him in and raised him. This familial error appears in several reference books.