Christian Bale says Moses - the character he plays in Ridley Scott's Exodus: Gods and Kings - is "far more human and fallible" than he had imagined, going so far as suggesting he could be considered a terrorist.

Exodus Gods and KingsChristian Bale plays Moses in Ridley Scott's Exodus: Gods and Kings

The Oscar-winning actor watched Monty Python's comedy classic The Life of Brian and Mel Brooks' History of the World: Part One to prepare for the role, not wanting to turn in a haughty performance of the biblical hero.

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"It's a very fine line between getting it right and doing an unwished for 'Life of Brian,'" Bale told Yahoo movies

However, on the complexities of the character, Bale suggested Moses is more human than we may assume.

"If you're not religious, you can look at it as one man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist," he said. "You look at empire and the attitudes of empire, and perhaps the necessity that for empires to exist... they (must) have actually a hierarchy among people, whether that's spoken or unspoken. It's fascinating. And it's for our times because it's very human, and Moses was a far more human and fallible character than I had imagined before."

Christian BaleChristian Bale stars opposite Joel Edgerton [L] in Gods and Kings

Bale stars opposite Joel Edgerton, Sigourney Weaver and John Turturro in Ridley Scott's epic, which has been criticized for its almost entirely white cast. Scott said the critics needed to "get a life", though Bale was a little more insightful.

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"I don't think fingers should be pointed, but we should all look at ourselves and say, 'Are we supporting wonderful actors in films by north African and Middle Eastern film-makers and actors, because there are some fantastic actors out there," he told the Guardian.

"If people start supporting those films more and more, then financiers in the market will follow. The audience has to show financiers that they will be there, and [then] they could make a large-budget film."

Watch the trailer for Exodus: Gods and Kings: