Overview: A remake of the 1925 silent film and adapted from Lew Wallace’s 1880 novel “Ben-Hur: A Tale of Christ,” the film is directed by William Wyler and produced by Sam Zimbalist and won a record 11 Academy Awards including Best Picture (Zimbalist), Best Director (Wyler), and Best Actor in a Leading Role (Heston). The film’s cast includes Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Haya Harareet, Stephen Boyd, Hugh Griffith, Martha Scott, Cathy O’Donnell, and Sam Jaffe.

The winner of 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor, Ben-Hur stands as one of the greatest Hollywood epics ever filmed. A member of the Jewish nobility living in Jerusalem, Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) lives a religious life and peacefully opposes the tyrannical occupation of Judea by Rome.

When a boyhood friend, Messala (Stephen Boyd), returns to the region as a Roman official, he and Judah become estranged due to Messala’s fanatical loyalty to Rome and ruthless indifference to the fate of Judea. Casting friendship aside, Messala fabricates a charge of treason against Ben-Hur, his sister and mother, all of whom are arrested by Roman soldiers.​

This Academy Award winning film - and religious epic masterpiece - Ben Hur, will be available for the first time for purchase Digitally in 4K Ultra HD and on 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc on February 17th, 2026.

The film will also be available to purchase on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc online and in-store at major retailers and available for purchase Digitally from Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, Google Play, Fandango at Home and more.

4K UHD Blu-ray Verdict: Warner Bros. Entertainment is expanding their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this month with the release of the Award-winning epic Ben-Hur (4K Ultra HD 2-Disc + Digital) in the expansive 4K Ultra HD video format this February 17th, 2026.

For my money, this Ben-Hur (4K Ultra HD 2-Disc + Digital) sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is Ben-Hur presented to us as a two-disc with a sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10, Aspect ratio: 2.76:1 and Original aspect ratio: 2.75:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHDs, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisp with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what is more is that it is enjoyably noticeable. For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision, we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color, which makes the eyes draw in, for sure.

One of those moments - and not to give too much away here - comes at the forefront of film (spoiler ahead) where after years of hardship and struggle Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) is reunited with his family and faith in humanity. The latter in particular is important in understanding Judah’s journey. Like Christ, Judah has also travelled a fateful road to Jerusalem to witness Christ crucification.

Here he remembers Jesus as the humble Nazarean who helped him years earlier. While he cannot stop Jesus crucification, he does what he can by offering an exhausted Jesus a drink of water in an attempt to repay a kindness to the man who first gave him water years earlier. This kindness I speak of occurs earlier in the film, where we find Judah being marched as a slave to the Roman galleys.

As for the audio, well we get the choice of: English: Dolby Atmos, English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit), English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.0, French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 and Audio descriptive.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

As for the film itself, well, it is kinda odd, but during the 1950’s, Hollywood made a huge number of Biblical epics - most of which were pretty wretched films. SAMSON AND DELILAH and DAVID AND BATHSHEBA quickly come to mind, but even the more respected TEN COMMANDMENTS was, despite all the hype, a pretty lousy film - with cardboard characters and silly writing. Even QUO VADIS was a pretty uninspired film, despite the violent nature of the film. So, in light of this, I am so happy to say that a Biblical epic CAN be exceptional and worth seeing!

What makes BEN-HUR so worthwhile? Well, of course, the film does contain some of the very greatest (if not the greatest) action scenes of all-time. You just can’t do better than the unbelievable chariot race sequence for excitement and spectacle. Even the naval battle scene is great despite it being filmed with large models - it’s state of the art for the time it was made.

In addition to the spectacle, it also handles the religious aspects of the film in a less heavy-handed manner than most of its contemporaries. You do see Jesus from behind throughout the film and you do not hear him speak - instead, the film focuses on Jesus’ teachings on others. And, while they do not show the resurrection, you are not left with the impression that he stayed dead like the 1925 version - a definite No-No for a Biblical film.

Now as for the acting, it was generally exceptional - especially from Steven Boyd, Jack Hawkins and Hugh Griffith. I also liked Charlton Heston in the title role, but I could see how some might see this performance as a bit more wooden. Also, there are times (especially at the very beginning and end) where the pacing is just too slow.

However, given the exceptional nature of the film on every other level, this can easily be forgiven, and the film is a truly magnificent work and not to be missed by any true fan of film and what its messages stand for (even today).

In summary, the chariot race scene also remains one of the greatest sequences ever put to screen. The religious aspect of the film is portrayed with great respect and awe. The soundtrack for the film is another superb element. This is a film I return to again and again. Yes, it is long, but you feel like you have been on such a journey with the characters by the time it concludes. This truly is one of the greatest movies of all time, especially now here in this crystal clear 4K Ultra HD rendition. [P.R.]

Ben Hur Digital release and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc contains the following new and previously released special features:

Ben-Hur: Anatomy of an Epic (NEW)
The Cinematography of Scale (NEW)
Charlton Heston & Ben-Hur: A Personal Journey
Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic
Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures
Screen Tests: George Baker and William Russell
Screen Tests: Leslie Nielsen and Cesare Danova
Screen Tests: Leslie Nielsen and Yale Wexler
Screen Tests: Haya Harareet and Make-Up Test
Commentary by Film Historian T. Gene Hatcher with Charlton Heston (2 Parts)
Music Only Track Showcasing Mikos Rózsa’s Award-Winning Score (2 Parts)

In 2004, the film was deemed culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant by the United States Library of Congress, and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.