1932 film
The Sign of the Cross is a 1932 American pre-Code epic historical drama film produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille, and released by Paramount Pictures. Based on the original 1895 play by English playwright Wilson Barrett, the screenplay was written by Waldemar Young and Sidney Buchman. It stars Fredric March, Elissa Landi, Claudette Colbert, and Charles Laughton, with Ian Keith and Arthur Hohl.
This film is the third and last in DeMille's biblical trilogy, following The Ten Commandments (1923) and The King of Kings (1927). Both play and film have a strong resemblance to the 1895–96 novel Quo Vadis and, like the novel, take place in ancient Rome during the reign of Nero. The art direction and costume design were by Mitchell Leisen, who also acted as assistant director.
The Sign of the Cross premiered on November 30, 1932, and was a financial hit. Karl Struss was nominated for Best Cinematography at the 6th Academy Awards.
Plot summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.