By Flavius Josephus' and Philo's accounts, he [Pontius Pilate] was supposedly terribly ruthless in general, often condemning people without trials of any nature. In fact, he was apparently recalled to Rome because he killed too many people. That he would get all weepy over this one Jew seems unlikely.

Hmm, then Bulgakov's interpretation in 'The Master and Margarita' would be, while quite beautiful, historically inaccurate?

On alleged antisemitism: every authoritarian regime and political organization (churches not being exceptions) want to get rid of revolutionary 'troublemakers'; lynch mobs can appear everywhere, especially in those brutal times, with crucifixions playing 'circenses' part of 'panem et circenses'. I would take shout "His blood upon our and our children's heads" (or whatever the wording was) from the crowd as redeeming recognition of wrong being done, not an eternal curse. Finally, this just happened to happen in Palestine, among Jews. I am not Christian, but is it not the whole point that Jesus got killed by those he come to save: humans?