These Actors Have Portrayed Religious Figures

There are some stars who have already slipped into religious roles. We want to introduce them to you in this picture gallery.

Charlton Heston, a star who even played religious roles several times, acted in two Bible-inspired films in the 1950s, including the 1956 film 'The Ten Commandments,' in which he portrayed Moses. But that wasn't his only biblical role..

He also played a role with a religious background in 'Ben Hur' (1959). The historical epic tells the story of the fictional Jewish prince and merchant "Judah Ben-Hur", who lived in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus. 'Ben Hur' is still one of the greatest historical films of all time.

But there are also more recent films that have made religious content the subject. Russell Crowe played the eponymous prophet and his journey on the ark in 'Noah' (2014).

Actor Joseph Fiennes also seems made for biblical films. He took on the role of Clavius in 2016's 'Risen'. After the crucifixion of Jesus, he is to guard his tomb. Nobody believes that he is a messiah and will be resurrected, but that his body will be stolen. When the tomb is really empty, "Clavius" sets out to find the robbers. Ultimately, however, he comes to the conclusion that Jesus really is the Messiah.

Joseph Fiennes took on a different historical and religious role in 'Luther' (2003), a film that portrays the life of Martin Luther, the famous German church reformer.

In the 2004 film 'The Passion of the Christ,' the story of Jesus from his condemnation, through his crucifixion, to his resurrection is depicted in a very brutal way. The role of Jesus was played by actor James Caviezel.

The film 'The Last Temptation of Christ' filmed by Martin Scorsese not only addresses the death of Jesus, but also his human side - namely that he too, as the son of God, has to defy earthly temptations. Here Willem Dafoe convinced with his acting performance as Jesus.

Well, recognized? This isn't really "Gandhi," it's actor Ben Kingsley. He embodied the Indian independence fighter in the 1982 film of the same name. Ben Kingsley was awarded an Oscar for Best Actor for his performance.

In the historical film 'The Name of the Rose' (1986) Sean Connery aka "William of Baskerville" tries to uncover several murders of monks. If you are looking for a strip with religious references that is presented in a slightly different way, you should have struck gold with 'The Name of the Rose'.