Joaquin Phoenix lined up to play Jesus Christ in Mary Magdalene film

Rooney Mara is starring in "authentic and humanistic portrait" of Magdalene's life

Jacob Stolworthy

Saturday 23 April 2016 16:17 BST

We're sure intense Joaquin Phoenix fans would already deem him the saviour of cinema, but the actor's next role could potentially add some heft to that statement - he's being lined up to play Jesus Christ in an upcoming film about Mary Magdalene.

While in the early stages of development, Deadline reports that director Garth Davis is lining up the Inherent Vice actor to star as the central figure of Christianity.

Rooney Mara will play Magdalene, one of Jesus' followers, in the drama that's been written by Helen Edmundson and Philippa Goslett.

It will reportedly be "an authentic and humanistic portrait of one of the most enigmatic and misunderstood spiritual figures in history.”

Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

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1/14Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Bill Murray

With only one Oscar nomination to his name (2003's Lost in Translation), Bill Murray is one oversight that - in many people's eyes - could easily throw the Academy Awards into disrepute.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Samuel L. Jackson

Considering he's one of the most bankable film stars in the world, it's a surprise that - with over 160 credits to his name - Samuel L. Jackson has only received a mere one nomination (Pulp Fiction in 1994).

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Joaquin Phoenix

With three previous nominations under his belt - for films including Gladiator and The Master - it was his performance as Johnny Cash in 2005 biopic Walk the Line that was expected to see him win an Oscar (he lost to the late Philip Seymour Hoffman's for Capote).

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Brad Pitt

The ever-present fixture he remains in Hollywood today, you'd think Brad Pitt would have won an Oscar by now; while serving as producer of 2014 Best Picture winner 12 Years a Slave, he currently has zero acting wins to his name despite three nominations (Twelve Monkeys, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Moneyball).

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Tom Cruise

Still one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, Tom Cruise seemed like a sure awards bet back in the Nineties with films Born on the Fourth of July, Jerry Maguire and Magnolia all earning him nominations - and yet, he never once emerged victorious.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Richard Gere

Would you believe us if we told you Richard Gere has never even been nominated? Well, it's true - and, quite honestly, shocks us quite a bit. Poor guy.

Juan Naharro Gimenez

Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Gary Oldman

One of the film industry's finest character actors, Gary Oldman has been nominated just the once for playing George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Johnny Depp

Despite his recent dip in quality, Johnny Depp has delivered several Oscar-worthy performances in the past. With a total of three nominations to his name - all for post-2000 releases including Pirates of the Caribbean and Finding Neverland - it's more a wonder he didn't receive more recognition for standout films such as Ed Wood and Donnie Brasco in the Nineties.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford may now be the world's highest-grossing actor (sorry, Samuel) but still doesn't have the Academy Award to back up such a feat. In fact, he's now into his third decade of not receiving recognition from the Academy with his sole nomination arriving back in 1985 for Witness.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Edward Norton

Edward Norton is just the kind of actor you'd assume would've scooped a statuette at some stage or another, but no - Norton just has three nominations to speak of; his first in 1996 (Primal Fear), his second in 1999 (American History X) and his third just last year (Best Picture winner, Birdman).

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

John Malkovich

American actor John Malkovich was nominated once in 1984 (Places in the Heart) and again in 1993 (In the Line of Fire) but hasn't posed much of a threat since.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Annette Bening

Poor Annette Bening, who has come close to victory four times (The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right) but is yet to clinch one.

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Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Glenn Close

...well, it could be worse; she could be Glenn Close who has been on the shortlist six times for films including Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons and, most recently, Albert Nobbs.

Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't

Helena Bonham Carter

Helena Bonham Carter may have received a Best Actress nomination for Wings of a Dove (1997), but it was her Best Supporting Actress nomination for 2012's Best Picture winner The King's Speech that seemed a sure bet; Melissa Leo's role in The Fighter won that round.

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Other actors to have famously taken on the role of Jesus in past films include Willem Dafoe (The Last Temptation of Christ, 1988), Ewan McGregor - for the upcoming Last Days in the Desert - and, most controversially, Jim Caviezel in Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ (2004).

Davis' debut film Lion stars Mara alongside Dev Patel, Nicole Kidman and David Wenham - a UKrelease date is yet to be announced. He directed the latter multiple episodes of Australian mystery drama Top of the Lake which is currently filming its second season.

Mary Magdalene will arrive in 2017.

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