that the Pope will die, Michelangelo goads him into having the will to live and to finish his work. The tide of war turns in favor of the Papal States, as allies pledge to assist the Pope. A Mass is held in which the congregation is shown the completed ceiling. After the ceremony, Michelangelo asks to begin carving the Pope's tomb. Realizing he has a short time to live, the Pope agrees. Together, the men admire the masterpiece of the Sistine Chapel, until Pope Julius walks away and Michelangelo turns to look at the space behind the altar where he would later paint his Last Judgement. Cast Production Film rights to the novel were bought by 20th Century Fox for a reported $125,000. The head of the studio was Peter Levathes, and Burt Lancaster was linked to the film. In 1962, Fox almost collapsed due to cost over-runs on a number of films, notably Cleopatra. This resulted in Darryl F. Zanuck returning to run the studio. He installed his son Richard D. Zanuck as head of production. In January 1963, Richard Zanuck signed Philip Dunne to write the script. In October 1963, Zanuck announced the film would be one of six "roadshow" movies the company would make over the next 12 months, worth $42 million all up. The others would be The Day Custer Fell (not made), Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, Justine, The Sound of Music and The Sand Pebbles. In November 1963, Charlton Heston signed to play the lead. Fox wanted Rex Harrison to co star and he wanted Fred Zinnemann to direct. By January, Carol Reed was set to direct and Rex Harrison to co star. Shooting The film's production schedule ran from June 1964 to September 1964. When it came time to film the feature, the Sistine Chapel could not be used, and it was recreated on a sound stage at Cinecittà Studios in Rome. During the production, Rex Harrison and Charlton Heston did not get along. (Reed and Heston had originally wanted Laurence Olivier for Pope Julius, but he was unavailable.) Twelve years later, while filming The Prince and the Pauper, Harrison completely avoided Heston. According to his diary, Heston was interested in playing Michelangelo before any studios decided to produce the film. Once cast in the part, he was excited to act under Reed, who had directed The Third Man (1949). Heston