Ben-Hur Premiers on 4K UHD 2/17/2026

[SRW1000]

From the Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment press release:
Ben-Hur

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.

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.

About the Film

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.

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)

Ben Hur

Ultra HD Blu-ray Languages: English, Spanish, French
Ultra HD Blu-ray Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Run Time: 212 minutes
Rating: G
Digital Street Date: February 17, 2026
Physical Street Date: February 17, 2026
I remember watching this on TV back in my high school days, but my Blu-ray still remains unopened.  This has all the markings of a fantastic release.

[bmoney]

An epic!  My dad LOVES this movie. And 
 In turn I like it just for that reason. 

[David Vaughn]

I'm looking forward to it as well. I have the Warner Deluxe Blu-ray box set from about 15 years ago, but I haven't rewatched the movie since then. Looking forward to the 4K presentation. Warner generally gives these A list classics the respect they deserve in the mastering process. 

[Barry]

First I want to thank Scott, and David, for keeping me informed about what new movies, I mean, old movies, are coming out.

when I was young and during the Blockbuster era, I really thought movies were being lost. We didn’t have streaming, we did have cable, and we did havE VHS. but at best we saw half a movie because they were shown on 3 x 4 TV screens. We never got really a great picture and great sound. So I did think if I didn’t see a movie in the theater I’d never see it the way it was made. And when a movie left the theaters, I was always concerned that they were gone for good .

but now especially with 4K and home theaters I can have these movies all over again. we can see Ben Hur and it’s glorious, wide screen and really enjoy the chariot race. with All The President’s Men we can see the details of the images.

I really never thought we would have all this. And Scott, I saw your home theater and it looks terrific! I bet it sounds terrific too! Who ever thought we would be able to have these things in our own home. All you need now to make it a full movie theater is a teenager sitting next to you using their cell phone!

[SRW1000]

First I want to thank Scott, and David, for keeping me informed about what new movies, I mean, old movies, are coming out.

when I was young and during the Blockbuster era, I really thought movies were being lost. We didn’t have streaming, we did have cable, and we did havE VHS. but at best we saw half a movie because they were shown on 3 x 4 TV screens. We never got really a great picture and great sound. So I did think if I didn’t see a movie in the theater I’d never see it the way it was made. And when a movie left the theaters, I was always concerned that they were gone for good .

but now especially with 4K and home theaters I can have these movies all over again. we can see Ben Hur and it’s glorious, wide screen and really enjoy the chariot race. with All The President’s Men we can see the details of the images.

I really never thought we would have all this. And Scott, I saw your home theater and it looks terrific! I bet it sounds terrific too! Who ever thought we would be able to have these things in our own home. All you need now to make it a full movie theater is a teenager sitting next to you using their cell phone!

Well said, Barry.

David and I are happy to keep you all updated on the upcoming titles!  It seems like we're getting special treats multiple times a month now.

I had the same concerns about movies as you did.  Growing up in a small town with a single screen theater also meant that a lot of the movies never even made it our way, especially smaller titles.  Being able to get these classics on disc, especially 4K is something my younger self could never have imagined.  Plus, for those of us that are interested, the making-of and commentary included these days is a wonderful bonus that we could never get in the theaters.

Thank you for the complement on my theater, as well.  Twenty years ago, such an indulgence would have been unthinkable, but technology has advanced and prices have fallen to a point where it is a reasonable luxury for just about anyone that loves cinema.  (And no, there are no rude teens with cell phones, but we have all the popcorn and soda you can eat and drink!)

[Barry]

When I bought my house, there was no such thing as home theater. So I made sure I had a good stereo room for all my audio equipment.  I have great stuff in the room, but I could only have a 110 inch screen. the room slowly grew into a home theater room. Because of its size they surround and ceiling speakers are built in to the wall. They are all Revels, except for the subs, the SVS which got positive reviews from David a long time ago.

it is just so great to sit there, with hot popcorn, and enjoying a movie.

oh, I should mention that I do like my local Dolby Theatre, but they no longer have fresh popcorn. They have popcorn that comes in in a large garbage bag. and instead of butter, they give you oil left over from from the Exxon Valdez.

[David Vaughn]

ROLF....Exon Valdez

[Paul Heroy]

Ha, funny stuff Barry. On a roll... I need a bit of that levity after my rather morose reply in the AI movies thread.

[bmoney]

Again back to my dad. Hifi stereo VCR and two large radio shack 3 way speakers was the setup when j was a kid.   We used to go into tweeter and dream of the big screen TV

Now look at us