The Robe

The Robe is a 1953 American fictional Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that is responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus. The film was released by 20th Century Fox and was the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope.

Like other early CinemaScope films, The Robe was shot with Henri Chrétien’s original Hypergonar anamorphic lenses.

The film was directed by Henry Koster and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was adapted from Lloyd C. Douglas’s 1942 novel by Gina Kaus, Albert Maltz, and Philip Dunne—although Maltz’s place among the blacklisted Hollywood 10 led to his being denied his writing credit for many years. The score was composed by Alfred Newman, and the cinematography was by Leon Shamroy. The film stars Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature and Michael Rennie, and co-stars Jay Robinson, Dean Jagger, Torin Thatcher, Richard Boone, Betta St. John, Jeff Morrow, Ernest Thesiger, and others.

A sequel, Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954), continues from where The Robe ends.