Darren Aronofsky To Direct Russell Crowe In Biblical Epic Noah

Hollywood hasn’t dabbled in outrightly religious-themed films in a while now. Even 2004′s “The Passion Of The Christ” was an independent production, financed primarily by director Mel Gibson’s own pockets. It went on to make a Mount Sinai-sized pile of cash, so it’s surprising that Tinseltown didn’t jump onto the bandwagon much faster. Well, maybe not that surprising, as America has become a much more secular country in this century, with the whole political correctness thing taking over media, politics and entertainment.

Dreamworks Pictures seems to have taken the first step this decade in bringing stories from the Christian Bible back to the big screen. And that project is “Noah”, about everybody’s favourite animal-sheltering, giant boat-building prophet. Last month, a director was found in Darren Aronofsky. Which struck many as a simultaneously unusual yet fitting choice. The man’s already done a thinly-veiled Buddhism story in “The Fountain”, and his body of work is filled with themes of men driven by singular objectives. Plus, I’m liking this choice cos Aronofsky’s got a great eye.

Yesterday, the studio announced that Russell Crowe will take on the title role. His confirmation comes after months of speculation over the choice of leading man. Joining him are two lovely actresses: Jennifer Connelly (“A Beautiful Mind”) and Saoirse Ronan (“The Lovely Bones”). However, their roles have not been revealed yet.

The Hollywood Reporter today spoke with DreamWorks President of Production Adam Goodman, and he had this to say about the project: “It will be a big, robust production and will have tremendous scale. It’s the perfect combination of casting and a remarkable adventure. This isn’t what you think of when you think of Darren, but it will be very true to him as a filmmaker. It will be PG-13 and will likely cost around $125 million.”

“Noah” is scheduled for release 28th March 2013.