Friendship. Betrayal. Intrigue. Sex. War. Adultery. Murder.
All the necessary ingredients to make it big as a primetime network TV show. And, yet, all found in what remains the best-selling book of all time – The Holy Bible.
Kings, a modern-day soap about a hero who rises to become the King of his nation, is based on the biblical story of King David. It will return to NBC in June, airing every Saturday at 8 p.m.
A cross between The Tudors and Smallville, much of what makes the actual Biblical story of David so rich in symbolism and fertile for allegory is what makes Kings a huge hit.
A lowly farm boy who possesses a rare gift of musical virtouso is anointed to become the land’s next king.
Executive produced by Michael Green, Kings bears clever resemblance to some of NBC’s hottest shows: HeroesSmallville. Why? Because Green co-created them as well as the highly acclaimed WB show, Everwood. and, yes,
“This show is gonna be a huge hit,” said Gregory Vilfranc, 30, a huge fan of Smallville and Heroes. “I mean they’re incorporating the Bible and doing it so masterfully. It’s not corny at all.”
With enough creative license to make it a crowd-pleaser (like David’s father dying in the war, but he’s left with his six brothers and a mother named Jessie), Kings’ writing team makes surprisingly accurate Biblical allusions that prompt one to think the screenwriters may have taken a couple of courses at Oral Roberts.
In the pilot episode, several prisoners of war are taken and a young soldier, David Shepherd (Chris Egan, Eragon), defies orders and crosses enemy lines to save them. Unknown to David, the soldier he saves is Jack Benjamin (Sebastian Stan, "The Covenant"), the son of the king. Gaining favor in the sight of Silas, David is appointed as press liaison in the king’s court. But, the people’s fondness for David soon leaves King Silas paranoid and suspicious – precisely mirroring the volatile Biblical character of King Saul.
Susanna Thompson (Once & Again) plays Queen Rose Benjamin, an emotionally distant, yet eternally regal and supportive wife and Allison Miller (Lucy’s Piano) stars as King Silas’ beautiful, intelligent and outspoken daughter, Michelle. There is an immediate chemistry between Michelle, who has a passion for reforming healthcare in the kingdom, and the wet-behind-the-ears David.
General Linus Abner (Wes Studi, Comanche Moon, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee), and William Cross, Silas’ brother-in-law (Dylan Baker, Spiderman 2), and, most importantly, Reverend Ephram Samuels played by the regal Eamonn Walker of Oz all try to influence King Silas.
Not uncommon for NBC, Kings introduces a clever method of flawlessly serving up another show fraught with Messianic types. A man who is reared in obscurity is suddenly raised up to rescue the world from – essentially – itself.
“The best part about this show is its subtlties,” said Vilfranc. “It’s not about demonizing God as you would think a modern-day interpretation would be about. But, God has a strong, non-tyrannical presence throughout the show. I mean, there’s a moment in one of the episodes that David even questions if there is a God, but you can feel still that spiritual connection. It’s just like us as human beings. How many times have we questioned? Yet, he’s still there.”
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