How I would Cast a Maccabees Movie!(Update, added a Question)
This is still incomplete, largely because I want to cast actual Israeli Actors for the Jewish Characters, I want to for once have actual Semitic looking people play the Ancient Israelites. So I haven't suggested anyone for them yet, perhaps someone where familiar with Israeli actors could make some Suggestions.
The film in mind here would open After Antiochus The Great is already Dead but while Epiphanies is still Hostage in Rome, it'll pretty begin with when Simon entices Heliodorus to Loot The Temple. And then carries the story to the Death of Epiphanies, having about the same length as The Ten Commandments
Jews
=Judas Maccabeus
=Mattathias
=Menaleus The Benjamite Apostate High Priest
=Simon Matthes
=Jonathon Apphus
=Eleazar Auran
=John Gaddis
=Onias Rightful High Priest
=Jason Usurper High Priest
=Simon The Benjamite
=Yose ben Yoezer
=Yose ben Yochanan
=Aristobulus of Paneas
Greeks
Ian Somerhalder=Antiochus Epphanes
Bella Thorne=The Maenad, Antiochus's Mistress/Mother of Alexander Balas
Stacye Farber=Cleopatra
Tricia Helfer=Queen Laodice
=General Gorgias
=Govenor Philip
=Chancellor Lysias
=Minister Heracleides
Richard Hatch=Heliodorus
=Apollonius Governor of Celosyria and Phenice
James Callis=Lysimachus
=Timarchus
Stephen R McQueen=Ptolemy Philometor
James Laferty=Ptolemy Psycon
=Ptolemy Macron
=Seleucus Philopater
Ian McDarmid=Eumenes of Pergamon
Sam Neil=Philonides of Laodicea Epicurean Philosopher
=Antipater of Tarsus Stoic Philosopher
Christopher Lee=CGI Apparition of Antiochus Magas/Voice only
Romans
Paul Johanson=Gnaeus Octavius Consul in 165 BC
James Marsters=Gaius Popillius Laenas a Roman Commissioner
Michael Weatherly=Aulus Attilius Praetor
I've decided to add a little discussion of accents. I my over thinking I've even considered what I would do for accents that might not even appear.
The Jews will have Israeli rather then Yiddish accents. The Romans will have British accents (Cockney for the lower class soldiers just like in I, Claudius).
Macedonian Greeks (includes the both Seleucid and Ptolemaic dynasties) will have Irish and Scottish accents like in Oliver Stone's Alexander, I liked that idea. The Athenians will have New England accents, to go along with the premise of them being the elitist Greeks. Following the tradition of certain modern stage versions of Ancient Greek plays, the Spartans and other Pelaponesian/Doric Greeks will have Texan accents. And the Ionian Greeks will have Australian and new Zealand accents. And any other types of Greek that appear would just have miscellaneous American accents.
Baneteans, Idumeans, Bedouins and other Arabian tribes will have Arabic accents. Parthians and other Persians will have Persian/Iranian accents. Galatians will have French accents. The Carthaginians will be Berbers, and Nubians obviously will have African accents.
Native Egyptians will have Coptic accents. Britons would have Welsh accents.