Ben-Hur is a popular American historical film from 1959 directed by William Wyler. The act revolves around the rich Ben-Hur, which was decived by his friend Mesala in Judea in the 1st century BC and sent to slavery. The film won 4 Golden Globes and 11 Oscars, setting a record that only equated the Titanic and Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
Although for a long time Ben Hur was ideal for men because of his bravery and masculinity, things seemed a bit different:
Gore Vidal did not get the recognition that he worked on the film, though he helped write the script. He allegedly managed to persuade Wyler to put a hidden gay context into the story between Ben Hur and Mesale (whose love affair disagreed) to explain Mesale's sudden betrayal.
The hidden gay relationship between the two main characters was brought to light in the documentary The Celluloid Closet when Gore Vidal revealed that he was brought on the film as a script doctor and rewrote scenes to “hint heavily at a prior sexual relationship between Charlton Heston’s title character and his childhood friend (and later betrayer) Messala.
Wyler never confirmed or denied Vidal’s version of events, conceding only that Vidal was “a clever fellow and a good writer.”
Do you see a gay context in Ben Hur movie?