Former Honorary Mayor Anthony Hopkins to Star in ‘Biblical Thriller’ ‘Mary’

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

Anthony Hopkins—a former honorary mayor of Pacific Palisades—takes on a starring role in “Mary,” set to release on Netflix on Friday, December 6.

From director D.J. Caruso, “Mary” is described as a biblical thriller.

“In coming-of-age story ‘Mary,’ the title character is shunned following the otherworldly conception of her child and forced into hiding,” according to IMDb. “King Herod’s relentless drive to maintain power at any cost ignites the murderous pursuit of the newborn child that he believes is a threat to his reign on the throne. The film sees the young Mary and Joseph on the run, and having to hide their baby, Jesus.”

Hopkins will take on the role of King Herod, alongside actress Noa Cohen as Mary. The cast also includes Mila Harris, Ido Tako, Stephanie Nur, Ori Pfeffer, Hilla Vidor, Gudmundur Thorvaldsson, Milo Djurovic and more.

The picture is produced by Mary Aloe, founder of Aloe Entertainment, and Hannah Leader. Timothy Michael Hayes wrote “the original screenplay after consulting with priests, bishops, Baptist pastors, rabbis, Mormons and Muslims along with biblical scholars and theologians,” according to Deadline.

Aloe shared that Hopkins was “primed” to play King Herod: “He embodied this historical figure of a king who was steeped in mental illness and greed with such great ferocity,” she said to Deadline.

“At this time of my life, I’m drawn to the challenge of complex scripts,” Hopkins said to Deadline. “As well, the level of the detail given to this production with extraordinary sets, props and costumes—makes me proud to be a part of this.”

In the 1990s, Hopkins appeared in movies “Desperate Hours,” “Nixon,” “The Mask of Zorro,” “Meet Joe Black” and “Instinct.” He is well known for his role as Hannibal Lecter in the 1991 psychological thriller “The Silence of the Lambs.” Hopkins won an Oscar for Best Actor in 1992 for his performance in the film.

Most recently, he won an Oscar for Best Actor in 2021 for his performance as Anthony in “The Father.”