David turns stone-slinging action Bible hero in 'House of David,' smiting giant Goliath
"House of David" pumps up the greatest Bible battle of them all: David vs. Goliath.
The Amazon Prime series (first three episodes now streaming, then weekly on Thursdays) tells the origin tale of King David, centered on the iconic underdog clash featuring the young shepherd David taking out the Philistine giant Goliath with a rock.
This Goliath looms nearly 10 feet tall, even more enormous than the giant actor portraying him ‒ 6-foot-8-inch "Mortal Kombat" star and MMA fighter Martyn Ford. Yet this David, played by curly-locked Michael Iskander, is a straight-up, dead-eyed stone slinger.
"The story of David is the origin story of origin stories, a 3,000-year-old hero's journey," says creator Jon Erwin. "But I had never seen a version of David and Goliath where the actual stone-slinging was cool and believable enough to kill a giant."
The eight-episode first season covers more than the famed battle. "David" follows the hero's ascent to become King of Israel, replacing King Saul (Ali Suliman), with pivotal help from the prophet Samuel ("Avatar" villain Stephen Lang). The series is rich in faith-drama credentials, including "The Chosen" creator Dallas Jenkins as a financial stakeholder and special adviser.
Erwin has also walked the faith-based movie path, producing modern tales such as "The Jesus Revolution" while keeping the throwing action real in the inspirational biopic of NFL quarterback Kurt Warner, "American Underdog."
The athleticism was a welcome gift discovered in Iskander, 23, coming off his supporting role in Broadway's Tony Award-winning best musical "Kimberly Akimbo"). Iskander sealed the deal in his auditions by revealing that he had thrown the shot put and the discus in high school. (Turns out discus-throwing is a similar motion to David's famed rock-slinging.)
"After a screen test, I was like, 'Guys, I used to throw the discus. Do you want to see?'" says Iskander. "I showed them the motion. And they were like, 'That's the move!' And it helped out, I guess. I got the job."
Then Erwin brought in the ultimate expert, Rene Charest, who goes by the "Star Wars" nom de guerre Dash Rendar on his ancient weapon-filled YouTube channel and Instagram page.
"He's ripped with long hair like an Old Spice commercial, but ancient warfare is all he does," says Erwin. "And he has spent years perfecting throwing a stone with a sling." The stone-throwing master flew to the Greece set to train Iskander daily with a variety of moves featuring number codes.
That elaborate spinning throw highlighted at the end of the trailer is all Iskander, fresh off the stone-heaving disabled list. "That was my first day back slinging after I injured my shoulder," says Iskander. "Everyone was holding their breath, but we did it nine times, and I was completely fine."
Iskander took every aspect seriously, including the required shepherding, which is where this David honed his superior throwing skills during idle hours. The actor even agreed to undergo sheep management training. "I thought, 'I'm playing David, the sheep are going to love me,'" he says, admitting the bonding was a ewe-volution. "On day one, the sheep just hated me and wanted nothing to do with me."
Singing wasn't a problem for the Egyptian-born actor, who moved to the United States when he was 9. But Iskander stepped it up, purchasing a 10-string lyre on Amazon during auditions and teaching himself to play the ancient instrument while learning the Shema prayer of faith in Hebrew from YouTube.
"I thought that even if I don't get the part, whoever is going to play David has to do justice to the songs," says Iskander, whose lyre-accompanied golden pipes are on display.
"He has the voice of an angel, he's athletic, and he did the work," says Erwin.
How tall is Goliath in 'House of David'?
Despite his skills, David makes no bones about being terrified of facing Goliath in "House of David." Those feelings are not difficult to bring up when the giant is played by huge British bodybuilder Ford, who says he typically weighs around 320 pounds. "And they asked me to put on a few pounds for the role, which was nice," says Ford.
Beyond the bicep-flattering armor, Ford's Goliath received a major special effects boost: Erwin digitally extended Goliath's height so that on screen he's 9-foot-9 inches tall.
"We made Goliath as tall as we could possibly historically justify, and as broad," says Erwin, who sought inspiration from the Marvel Comics Universe. "Thanos in 'The Avengers' movies was always our benchmark. Goliath was a character who taunted and terrified the entire army of Israel for 40 days."
Ford worked with a voice coach to downplay his British accent and received another post-production boost to make Goliath's bellows echo with terrifying effectiveness. For the hulking actor known for playing the brutish enforcer in "F9: The Fast Saga" and gladiator Flama in "Those About to Die," his "House of David" villain is Peak Baddie.
"Goliath caps it all, even for someone who always plays the bad guy," says Ford. "I'm playing the ultimate bad guy in the history of stories."