‘The Book of Clarence’ Updates: Benedict Cumberbatch Joins the Cast

Benedict Cumberbatch is signing on for a new project and jumping straight into production. He has joined the cast of Jeymes Samuel’s The Book of Clarence alongside Stranger Things star Caleb McLaughlin, James McAvoy, and David Oyelowo.

The project, which is still listed on IMDB Pro as Pins and Needles, recently began production in Italy. The film’s story is inspired by epic Hollywood movies set in biblical times. It will tell the tale of Clarence, a down-on-his-luck man in Jerusalem. Clarence finds himself embarking on a misguided attempt to capitalize on the rise of celebrity and influence of the Messiah for his own personal gain.

The journey leads him on an exploration of the idea of faith and to a highly unexpected path of his own. LaKeith Stanfield, best known for his roles in 2018’s Sorry to Bother You and 2019’s Knives Out, has been cast as Clarence.

Jeymes Samuel, best known for directing 2013’s The Great Gatsby and 2021’s The Harder They Fall, is directing the movie from an original screenplay he wrote. Additionally, Samuel is also producing the flick alongside James Lassiter, rapper Jay-Z, and former Netflix executive Tendo Nagenda.

The Book of Clarence Will Be a “Fun-Filled Extravaganza” from the “Biggest Franchise in the World”

Samuel, 43, describes the movie as a “fun-filled extravaganza”. And he compares it to biblical classics such as The Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur.

“You remember those biblical epics, whether they were about the Bible or just taking place around it, from ‘The Ten Commandments’ to ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told’, ‘Samson and Delilah’ and ‘Ben-Hur’, which runs alongside all that stuff in the Bible? As will be ‘The Book of Clarence’, a full fun-filled extravaganza. It’s written and ready to go, and set in 29 AD.” Samuel reveals.

The filmmaker also noted that he was excited to be making a biblical movie. Additionally, Samuel sees it as “the biggest franchise in the world”.

“This is exactly what excites me. Firstly, the Bible’s the biggest franchise in the world. The biggest superhero, the most famous superhero of all time is Jesus himself.” Samuel adds.

Unfortunately, there’s no word on a release date yet for The Book of Clarence. But we’ll keep you posted!