There hasn’t been a cinematic duel this brutal since Oliver Stone rushed his “Alexander” disaster into theaters about the same time as Wolfgang Petersen’s “Troy”. Or how about when two studios decided, about the very same time, to do killer asteroid movies, resulting in Michael Bay’s “Armageddon” and Mimi Leder’s “Deep Impact”? Fortunately, no one was killed during the rush to get those movies made and into theaters, but it might not be so bloodless when Warner Bros. and Relatively gears up their own ancient Greek actioners, “War of the Gods” for Relativity, and a remake of the classic “Clash of the Titans” for Warner Bros.

The Hollywood Reporter lines up the combatants for us:

The race for “War of the Gods” and “Clash of the Titans,” two rival projects set up at Relativity and Warners, is quickening.

Both are close to casting their leads, with “Stardust” topliner Henry Cavill set to star in “Gods” and “Terminator Salvation” star Sam Worthington in negotiations to climb aboard “Titans,” which Thunder Road is producing and Legendary Pictures is co-producing.”

In addition, the projects have set start dates. “Gods” would seem to have the edge — it’s tentatively planned for a February shoot, while production on “Titans” is slated to begin in April.

Both are sub-$100 million projects, though the budget for “Gods,” at approximately $85 million, is believed to be higher than “Titans,” which is closer to the $70 million range.

If you were so inclined to put money on who will end up on top, I say go with the “Clash of the Titans” remake, which has a number of factors in its favor. It has Louis Leterrier, coming off the geek-friendly “The Incredible Hulk” behind the camera, and Sam Worthington, who is sure to become a mammoth star once “Terminator Salvation” lands in theaters just before James Cameron’s “Avatar”, both major genre pictures starring Worthington.

As for “War of the Gods”, it’s got, er, that guy who was in that movie no one saw, directed by that other guy who directed that other movie you always thought about seeing, but never did, and all of it based on a game you’ve probably never played, or even heard of.

Basically, put the house on “Clash” and call it a day, kids.

Below: Watch out, “War of the Gods” guys, the Clash guys know how to take down Gods.