Nazanin Boniadi, a lead cast in Ben-Hur movie, says the theme of forgiveness in the faith story has great relevance for the troubled times – offering an opportunity to be inspired toward that value of kindness.
The British-American actress of Iranian descent plays the role of Esther, a lady, who encourages Ben-Hur (played by Jack Huston) to be kind, and not revengeful, in the footsteps of Christ, as the protagonist, wronged by his adopted brother, deals with the vicissitudes of life.
“For me personally I’m an activist so I see a lot of turmoil and heartache in the world and tragedy. I think we’ve always had that throughout time but now I think more so, we need to have this message out there,” Boniadi told The Christian Post.
The 2016 Ben-Hur movie hit theaters this month. Like the 1959 classic, the film is derived from Lee Wallace’s novel Ben-Hur : A Tale of the Christ in which a fictional Jewish prince Judah Ben-Hur is falsely implicated as assassin and enslaved by Romans. He becomes charioteer. In the novel, the story coincides with the time period of Jesus.
Boniadi, who in interviews this month said she is proud of the role of Esther, told the Post that the theme of forgiveness is a very timely message in the face of what has happened in America this year including the Orlando club shooting, the killings of innocent black men and police officers, and general social unrest.
“It’s not something that is new but I think the way that the story is told it is also highly entertaining so it’s not pounding anyone over the head with a message. We all know in our hearts that forgiveness is the right thing, it’s just a matter of being inspired to reach that place,” she remarked.
“I do think faith is important when it introduces positivity into your life and you see it with love in your heart because there’s so many people who unfortunately use faith for detrimental things or to justify detrimental actions. I think when you see it as Esther does in the film with hope and you hang on because of your faith, it’s such a positive motivation in life,” Boniadi told the Post.
