The King of Kings

"A father's greatest joy is raising his son."

2025 1h 42m EN

🙌

8.3

BANGER

★8.3TMDB · 215

AdventureAnimationFamilyFantasy

Synopsis

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Charles Dickens tells his young son Walter the greatest story ever told, and what begins as a bedtime tale becomes a life-changing journey. Through vivid imagination, the boy walks alongside Jesus, witnessing His miracles, facing His trials, and understanding His ultimate sacrifice.

“A father's greatest joy is raising his son.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Oscar Isaac
Jesus Christ (voice)
Kenneth Branagh
Charles Dickens (voice)
Uma Thurman
Catherine Dickens (voice)
Pierce Brosnan
Pontius Pilate (voice)
Roman Griffin Davis
Walter Dickens (voice)
Forest Whitaker
Peter (voice)
Ben Kingsley
High Priest Caiaphas (voice)
Mark Hamill
King Herod (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jang Seong-ho
Writers: Jang Seong-ho
Languages: English
Countries: South Korea, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released last year.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: South Korea, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jang Seong-ho, shot by Kim Woo-hyung. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Kim Tae-seong. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Jang Seong-ho shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Oscar Isaac and Kenneth Branagh and Uma Thurman carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A father's greatest joy is raising his son.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jang Seong-ho directs. Kim Woo-hyung behind the camera. Kim Tae-seong scores. Jang Seong-ho cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in South Korea, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.
2Released last year.
3International production across 2 countries: South Korea, United States of America.
4Directed by Jang Seong-ho, shot by Kim Woo-hyung. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Kim Tae-seong. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Jang Seong-ho shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Oscar Isaac and Kenneth Branagh and Uma Thurman carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "A father's greatest joy is raising his son.".
9IMDB entry: tt7967302 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 13 themes, including "based on novel or book", "cat", "19th century", "1st century".
11Released under 13 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Kim Woo-hyung
Original score: Kim Tae-seong
Editing: Jang Seong-ho
Sound: Duncan Campbell
Runtime: 102 min · 1h 42m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $25,200,000
Box office: $83,612,781
Return: 332% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: The King of Kings (2025)

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-04-14
★ 6/10
Charles Dickens has a young son who loves stories of King Arthur and Camelot, of dragons and sword play - and refuses to go to bed until his father regales him with a story. This evening, though, dad tries a different tack by telling him a tale of the king of kings. The lad is suitably sceptical but is soon engrossed in a story of Jesus and the birth of Christianity. This animation uses a paternally Dickensian narration to plonk the young Walter amidst the scenarios as Jesus fights temptation in the desert, has his battles with the nasty Pharisees and recruits his group of followers who share his dream of a peaceful and more equitable world. What makes this telling a little more interesting is that it tries to tell us the stories through the eyes of the young lad. Like those bibles we got as kids that accentuate the adventure elements of the parables, that allow the imagination of a child to get hold of some exciting stories rather than adopt anything akin to the more pontifical. To that end, it plays nicely to Walter’s imagination and, of course, the sentiment extols the virtues the writer intended. It does mess around with the time lines a bit though, and imposing the kid in the middle of the biblical scenes rather disjointed it I felt, but is does engage quite entertainingly as it gathers pace. Though it could never be described as graphic, it also doesn’t shy away from demonstrating just how brutal these times could be if your face didn’t fit or if you crossed the authorities - local or Roman, and as an history lesson it is much more approachable than many more gospel-led lectures on the birth of Christ and his religion. Adults may find it a bit unchallenging, but as a kids introduction to the concepts of faith - in it’s broadest sense, decency and just a bit of fun, too, it uses amiable animation techniques and works fine.

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