Trivia / King of Kings

• California Doubling: The film was shot on multiple locations throughout Spain, one of which included the Venta de Frascuelas near the rocky terrains of Chinchón for the Sermon on the Mount scene where 7,000 extras were used. The El Fresno was used to represent the Jordan River, as well as the Rambla de Lanujar in Almería for the wilderness where Jesus was tempted. The Añover de Tajo within the province of Toledo was substituted for the Mount of Olives. The municipalities of Manzanares el Real and Navacerrada were shot for the scenes set in Nazareth and Golgotha, the site where Jesus was crucified respectively.
• Creative Differences: Screenwriter John Farrow left the project over creative differences. Farrow later explained that in the context of Jesus's trial, Samuel Bronston wanted him to "whitewash the Jewish leaders, and lay blame entirely on the Romans. I refused to make these changes. I quit."
• Deleted Role: An original Jewish Zealot character named "David" portrayed by Richard Johnson was written into the film who was function as a bridge between the film's plot threads. Although he was to be featured prominently into the film, his scenes were ultimately deleted during post-production save for a scene for when Jesus enters the Second Temple.
• Dyeing for Your Art: Not only was Jeffrey Hunter's chest hair shaved for the crucifixion scene but his underarms as well. So much attention has been paid to this situation over the past fifty years, that nobody's ever noticed Hunter also wears a false putty nose throughout the film, most evident in the close-ups at the crucifixion scenes.
• Follow the Leader: Made in the wake of Ben-Hur.
• Hostility on the Set: Due to the heavy deviations being made to the film's shooting script, Nicholas Ray and Philip Yordan were no longer on speaking terms communicating only through walkie-talkies.
• Irony as She Is Cast: John the Apostle, one of Jesus' most dedicated and beloved apostles, is played by Antonio Mayans. Mayans is best known as one of the regular collaborators of Jess Franco, a notorious director of graphically violent and sexual exploitation movies once publicly disowned by the Vatican as "the most dangerous filmmaker for Catholics."
• Money, Dear Boy: Robert Ryan was keen to work with Nicholas Ray, but was more keen on the payday of $50,000 for just a week's work.
• Uncredited Role: Orson Welles as the narrator and Ray Milland as the voice of Satan. Ray Bradbury did uncredited work on the script. Several scenes were directed without credit by Charles Walters.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The film began life as a very personal project for director John Farrow (father of Mia), who had recently made John Paul Jones (1959) for producer Samuel Bronston. Farrow, an ardent convert to Roman Catholicism and quite possibly the only Hollywood director ever to be made a Papal Knight, called the project "The Sword And The Cross" and planned to use only the words of the Bible for dialogue. His script was deemed impossible to film and producer Bronston elected to proceed without him. Farrow never directed a film again.
  • Ray Bradbury wrote an ending in which the resurrected Jesus commissions the disciples to preach the Gospel. Then, he elevates as he walks towards the horizontal shores of Galilee leaving only his visible footprints to be covered with blowing dust. The disciples would also leave footprints in all four directions to be covered with dust. However, the ending was deemed too expensive to be filmed.
  • In May 1959, it was reported that Alec Guinness had met with Bronston to discuss playing the role of Jesus. By February 1960, it was reported that Christopher Plummer had been asked to portray the role. Peter Cushing and Max von Sydow were also considered. Von Sydow would later play Jesus in The Greatest Story Ever Told.
  • It was reported that Richard Burton was cast as a centurion, but left the role when he was refused top billing.
  • James Mason turned down the role of Pontius Pilate. He would later play Joseph of Aramathea in Jesus of Nazareth.
  • Grace Kelly turned down the role of Mary.
• Working Title: Son of Man.

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