Charlton Heston Never Knew Ben-Hur and Messala Were Gay – Showbiz Cheat Sheet
The epic Ben-Hur won 11 Academy Awards and remains a classic over 60 years later. However, the film held a big mystery to its star, Charlton Heston who played Judah Ben-Hur. Screenwriter Gore Vidal admits he added a LGBTQ subplot to the biblical film and never told Heston about it.
Vidal explains in the 1995 documentary The Celluloid Closet, which is now part of the Sony Pictures Classics 30th Anniversary 4K UHD Collection. It turns out Judah Ben-Hur had a lover the actor never knew about.
‘Ben-Hur’ needed more conflict to sustain a 3-hour epic
Judah Ben-Hur has an epic journey from slavery to his triumphant return, and he encounters Jesus Christ along the way. Messala (Stephen Boyd) is the Roman who betrays Ben-Hur. Vidal realized he needed more subtext to their relationship.