Less than a year after The Bible miniseries aired on the History Channel, a film called Son of God that incorporates scenes from the series will open in theaters on February 28. One character that caused quite a bit of controversy in The Bible will be missing from Son of God, though: Satan.
When Satan first appeared in The Bible miniseries last year, quite a few people were upset with the actor selected to portray the character because they believed he bore a striking resemblance to President Barack Obama. Moroccan actor Mohamen Mehdi Ouazanni portrayed Satan in the series, and after he appeared on screen, it wasn’t long before the Obama-Satan comparisons began, with many people wondering whether the show’s producers were trying to make a political statement.
Check out a comparison of Ouazanni as Satan and Obama below.
Barack Obama and satan from the TV show the bible. Coincidence. …….I think not #foodforthought pic.twitter.com/Iep4Nb5OVf
— allan scott (@skpdogg2004) February 20, 2014
Whatever controversy Son of God stirs up when it opens in theaters next week–it’s almost certain that someone will take issue with the film–it won’t have anything to do with Obama this time around. The Bible and Son of God co-producer Roma Downey (who you likely remember from her days on Touched By An Angel) has verified that Satan won’t appear in the film. “It gives me great pleasure to tell you that the devil is on the cutting-room floor. This is now a movie about Jesus, the son of God, and the devil gets no more screen time,” said Downey.
While it might be strange to view a film about the son of God without seeing Satan, Downey felt it was necessary to ensure that people leave theaters talking about the right person–Jesus.
“Someone made a comment that the actor who played the devil vaguely resembled our president, and suddenly the media went nuts,” Downey said. “The next day, when I was sure everyone would only be talking about Jesus, they were talking about Satan instead. For our movie, Son of God, I wanted all of the focus to be on Jesus. I want his name to be on the lips of everyone who sees this movie, so we cast Satan out.”
In addition to Son of God, another Biblical film will hit theaters next month. Noah, starring Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly, will open on March 28 and will bring the story of the flood to the big screen.
Image via Twitter