Bron Studios Taps Antoine Fuqua To Direct ‘Siege Of Bethlehem’

BRON Studios announced today it is producing the feature film SIEGE OF BETHLEHEM, based on the book “A Season in Bethlehem: Unholy War in a Sacred Place” written by former Newsweek Jerusalem bureau chief Joshua Hammer.  Antoine Fuqua, the powerhouse filmmaker behind The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven and Training Day, is set to direct.  BRON is producing alongside Michael Kase (6 Underground, 13 Hours, Transformers), from a screenplay co-written by Avi Issacharoff(Fauda), the Palestinian and Arab Affairs Correspondent for Haaretz, and Matt Cook (Patriots Day, Triple 9), a military veteran who served two combat tours in Iraq. 

Inspired by a true story, the film tells how a Muslim, an Israeli Jew, and a Christian American came together to prevent a battle from breaking out between the Israeli army and a group of armed Palestinian militants who had taken refuge in Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity, the believed birthplace of Jesus.  At the close of 39 days, despite the resistance put up by many of their superiors and colleagues, the three managed to reach a resolution, ending the siege and avoiding an all-out war on the church’s hallowed grounds.

Issacharoff and Lior Raz, the creative team behind Netflix’s critically acclaimed Fauda television series, Kase and BRON’s Aaron L. Gilbert (Bombshell, Joker) will produce.  Jason Cloth of Creative Wealth Media will serve as executive producer. 

“We are excited to partner with talented storytellers who have an unparalleled understanding of this extraordinary event and with action film icons who have the ability to bring it to life in the most powerful way,” said Gilbert. 

"I've been shepherding this project for 15 years,” says Kase. “There couldn't be a more appropriate time for a movie like this; it’s a story about uniting people through peace at a time of significant unrest."