It's Easter weekend yet again, which means the annual tradition of The Ten Commandments airing on primetime TV. The 1956 Cecil B. DeMille-directed religious epic—which stars Charles Heston as Moses, the prophet who led the Exodus of the Hebrew people out of Egypt and across the Red Sea to freedom—will be broadcast tonight as part of the Easter TV 2024 specials.
The biblical drama, which also stars Yul Brynner as Rameses and Anne Baxter as Nefretiri, has aired annually on U.S. network television over the Easter/Passover season for more than five decades. Since 2006, ABC has been broadcasting The Ten Commandments on the Saturday night prior to Easter Sunday, and this year the network is keeping with the tradition, showing the classic film tonight, March 30, starting at 7pm Eastern.
Unlike the old days when TV networks would split lengthy films into separate airings over several nights of programming, The Ten Commandments will be shown in its nearly-four-hour entirety tonight.
To tune in, a traditional cable subscription automatically includes the channel, while a TV antenna allows you to receive your local ABC station for free. If you’re looking for a way to watch the legendary film without a cable plan, you can use live TV streaming services to stream channels over the internet. ABC is available on Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Hulu with Live TV or YouTube TV, and you can find prices for the various services below.
Considered the magnum opus of Cecil B. DeMille and the final directorial effort from the iconic filmmaker before his death in 1959, The Ten Commandments was both a commercial sensation (it was the highest-grossing film of 1956) and a critical success, lauded for its stunning Technicolor visual and its extravagant retelling of the Bible story. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and took home the awards for Best Visual Effects.
And if you want to have yourself a mini movie marathon over Eastern weekend, you can keep the biblical theme going with our watch list of the top Passion of Christ films.
Check out the trailer from the majestic motion picture before tuning into The Ten Commandments tonight, March 30, on ABC.
