Gods of Egypt (2016)
Trivia
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This film is based on the Egyptian myth "The Contendings of Horus and Set," in which Set and Horus battled for the rule of Egypt.
Gerard Butler said as soon as he read the word "god" in the script to describe his character, he knew he would embark on a huge bodybuilding process. Butler started his workouts immediately because he 'wanted to make sure he looked liked one by the time shooting began.'
In Egyptian mythology, Set (also spelled Setesh, Sutekh, Setekh, and Suty) is a god of the desert, storms, disorder, violence, and foreigners. In Ancient Greek, the god's name is Seth. Ra employed Set on his solar boat to repel Apep, the serpent of Chaos. Set was also lord of the red land (desert), where he was the balance to Horus' role as lord of the black land (soil).
This film and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) have almost 300 of the same cast and crew members, including first assistant director P.J. Voeten, visual effects supervisor Julian Dimsey, stunt member Tim Wong, and actors Courtney Eaton and Abbey Lee.
The serpentine creature featured in the trailer is Apophis, an Egyptian deity of chaos that is usually depicted as a snake in Egyptian art and hieroglyphs.
In the film, souls pass to the afterlife by having their richness weighed on a scale against a feather by Anubis. In Egyptian mythology, the souls placed their hearts on a scale (as a symbol of the flaws and virtues), which is why internal organs such as the heart were mummified. The movie apparently sets the version of mythology that is known today.
Lionsgate/Summit's exposure on the production budget is only around $10 million, because Lionsgate/Summit were able to recoup most of the budget via international pre-sales and Australia tax incentives.
Director Alex Proyas was born in Egypt, to Greek parents who moved to Australia when he was 3 years old.
The architect of the tower dedicated to Ra says it's 2,220 cubits high, 1,015 meters or 3,330 feet. When the film was released, the tallest structure in the world was the Burj Khalifa, at 829.8 meters or 2,722 feet.
The staff-like weapon some of the gods are wielding is called a "war scepter", and was associated with people of power in ancient Egypt, specifically the gods and the ruling pharaoh.
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau got down to 7% body fat for his role in the film.
Rachael Blake, who was cast as Isis, Horus' mother, is a year younger than Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. Bryan Brown who played Osiris, Ra's son is 4 years older than Geoffrey Rush who played Ra.
Set's armor resembles a sha. Horus' armor resembles a falcon. Hathor's headdress resembles a cow. Thoth's headdress resembles an ibis.
In the film, the father of Osiris and Set is referred to as Ra, but in Egyptian Mythology, it is in fact Geb.
Alex Proyas' first feature in seven years. The previous one was Knowing (2009).
When the film was criticized for casting mostly Caucasian actors, the director and production companies issued separate apologies.
In Game of Thrones (2011), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau plays Jaime Lannister, a "lion" who is a king slayer. In Gods of Egypt, he plays Horus, a king who is a lion slayer.
Gerard Butler is 1 year older than Nikolaj Coster-Waldau.
Brenton Thwaites and Geoffrey Rush both played in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
Both Elodie Yung and Chadwick Boseman are part of the Marvel Cinematic universe. Yung plays Elektra in Daredevil (2015). Boseman plays Black Panther in Captain America: Civil War (2016).
The official mobile game is created by Dutch developer Sticky Studios and published by Lionsgate. The game features locations and characters from the film.
Two of the actors playing gods played cat-themed characters in other productions. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau played Jaime Lannister, the Lion, in Game of Thrones (2011). Chadwick Boseman played King T'Challa, the Black Panther, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
