David Wyler, the son of Ben-Hur director William Wyler, is producing a miniseries version of the saga, it was announced just days after Charlton Heston passed away. The $30 million project, which starts lensing this year, has already been sold to outlets in Spain, Germany and Canada, and is currently being shopped in the U.S. to two networks and a cable channel. "This is dedicated to my dad and Chuck," Wyler tells Variety. "It's a great way to keep his memory alive."Versus previous takes (including the 1959 film), the mini will adhere more closely to the 1880 Lew Wallace novel... yet skew the lead role younger (placing Ben-Hur in his mid-twenties) and downplay the story's religious aspects. — MWM
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What does Prison Break owe Sometime a Great Notion and more questionsSend your movie questions to FlickChickSee Maitland McDonagh and Ken Fox review this weeks new flicks in Movie Talk Question I was wondering which director has coached the most actors to Oscar nominations andor wins Im thinking its Clint Eastwood Diane FlickChick Nowhere near Five actors have earned best actoractress Oscar recognition after appearing in Clint Eastwood movies Hilary Swank won for Million Dollar Baby and Sean Penn and Tim Robbins for Mystic River respectively Marcia Gay Harden and Meryl Streep were nominated for Mystic River and The Bridges of Madison County In addition Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman won supporting Oscars for Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby Thats a nice track record but pales next to that of William Wyler whose collaborators racked up a whopping total of 36 acting nominations some of them notably Bette Davis for more than one film
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Question: My father and I were chatting about Clint Eastwood's talent for directing actors to Academy Awards, now I'm wondering which director has directed the most actors to Oscar victories. My father is thinking William Wyler. Is he right?
Answer: Yes, he is: It's William Wyler. He directed 31 actors and actresses in performances that earned them Academy Award nominations. Bette Davis (Jezebel), Fay Bainter (Jezebel), Greer Garson (Mrs. Min
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