One of the most surprising and long-awaited film projects to get traction lately is the production of the biblical epic The Resurrection of The Christ. The film is a direct sequel to Mel Gibson‘s 2004 wildly successful and deeply polarizing adaptation of the tale of the last days of Jesus Christ in The Passion of the Christ. Though decades have passed, Gibson still sees an opportunity to continue the story with the resurrection, and he’s pushing for a more epic sequel. And the scale of his plans has now been unveiled by the biblical budget.
Per a report by Deadline, The Resurrection of The Christ will be a sequel split into two movies to be released in 2027. March 26 marks the release of Part 1, while Part 2 will arrive in theaters 40 days later on Ascension Day. Each of the movies is apparently costing $100 million, rounding up to $200 million and officially becoming one of the most expensive projects not to be backed by any major studio. Like the first movie, The Resurrection of The Christ is being produced as an independent feature. Lionsgate will be taking care of distribution after they acquired the project earlier this year, although it isn’t clear in which markets it will be released.
Another important detail in the report regards the film’s language. The Passion of The Christ was shot in Hebrew and Aramaic, with the actors learning to speak the languages. Despite requiring English-speaking audiences to read subtitles, the 2004 original was very successful, but Gibson won’t make the actors or the audience do any of that again. It’s being reported that the film will be shot in English, marking the biggest change from the original movie. Well, aside from the major casting changes, of course, as Jim Caviezel has been replaced by Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen (The Last Kingdom).
‘The Resurrection of the Christ’ Is a Highly Secretive Project
The Resurrection of the Christ is a risky project. A hugely expensive and risky project. While Gibson will finally get the chance to continue the story he started back in 2004, there’s no question that audiences and the world around us has changed a bit since then. Shifting the language to English is likely to help with conventional viewers, but the director faces other challenges. Not only has Gibson himself become a controversial figure, but, based on the response to the first movie, the filmmaker could have a major box office bomb on his hands should The Resurrection of the Christ prove to be as polarizing as Passion was. It’s not like people have become less sensitive…
Gibson is also keeping everything very much under wraps in oder to drape The Resurrection of the Christ under a veil of mystery. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Gibson is planning something different outside the conventions of what a sequel to The Passion of the Christ is expected to be. But that is a possibility. However, this secrecy seems to be working with potential buyers, who haven’t been allowed to read the material and are relying on Gibson’s position to deliver a compelling movie that can also be successful.
In any case, they don’t seem to have a problem with the director’s intention to keep the Italy-based shoot completely secret, with one potential buyer saying, “This one sells itself. It’s gold in terms of the material. Just look how well the first one did. We’re expecting it to be very competitive. People are ready to write big checks.”
- Release Date
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March 26, 2027
- Writers
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Randall Wallace, Donal Gibson
- Producers
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Jim Caviezel
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