'Exodus: Gods and Kings' Beats Out 'The Hunger Games: MockingJay Part 1' To Win Weekend Box Office
The new biblical movie Exodus: Gods and Kings starring Christian Bale topped the box office this weekend bringing in $24.5 million in the U.S. This helped beat out The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1, starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth, which came in No. 2 with $13.2 million bringing their U.S. total sales to $277.4 million.
Rounding out the Top 5 were Penguins of Madagascar, bringing in $7.3 million in its third week, Top Five starring Chris Rock earning $7.2 million and animated movie Big Hero 6 bringing in $6.5 million.
Exodus: Gods and Kings is directed by Ridley Scott and depicts the story of Moses (Bale) in pre-Ten Commandment days, going up again Pharaoh Ramses (Joel Edgerton) to the slaves of his people. The film also stars Sigourney Weaver, Aaron Paul, Ben Kingsley, and John Turturro.
Moses was a pivotal figure in the Old Testament, standing up to Pharaoh Ramses to free 600,000 slaves, through 10 deadly plagues and leading his people in the desert out of Egypt while parting the Red Sea. "What I thought I knew about Moses I didn't really," director Scott says. "Either I wasn't paying attention in Sunday school or I had forgotten. I was knocked out by who he was and the basics of the story-it has to be one of the greatest adventures and spiritual experiences that could ever have been."
Christian Bale spoke with EW's Sara Vilkomerson sharing that he was not trying to duplicate Charlton Heston's famous role. "Charlton Heston does Charlton Heston better than anyone," he said.
"But the biblical account of Moses is extraordinary, and there was lots of room for us to go to places that [Heston's movie] The Ten Commandments never dreamed of going."
Filming for the movie took place in Spain, in Almería, along the Mediterranean Sea, and Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands. "It has these stunning beaches," Bale says of the filming locations. "It looks like a Tyrannosaurus rex could come running around a corner."