Mel Gibson’s highly anticipated sequel to the blockbuster hit “The Passion of the Christ,” titled “The Resurrection of the Christ,” will start filming this summer.
Cinecittà Studios CEO Manuela Cacciamani told Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore that Gibson and Icon Productions have set an August start-of-shoot date for the follow-up to his 2004 biblical epic, Variety reported.
Filming will take place at Rome’s Cinecittà Studios — the same lot where the original 2004 film was shot, while production will take place in the Italian town of Matera, along with several other old-world locations, including Ginosa, Gravina Laterza and Altamura.
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Jim Caviezel is set to return as Jesus, along with Maia Morgenstern (Mary) and Francesco De Vito (Peter). Gibson is directing the film and co-wrote the script with “Braveheart” writer Randall Wallace.
In a January interview with Joe Rogan, Gibson described the forthcoming film as “an acid trip,” adding that he’s “never read anything like” the script. Gibson also said he would use de-aging techniques that are “so good now” for Caviezel, who is now 56.
After its 2004 premiere, “The Passion of the Christ” became the highest-grossing R-rated film in U.S. history, raking in $370.8 million against its $30 million budget, The film was also nominated for three Academy Awards.
“There was a lot of opposition to it,” Gibson told Rogan of the first film. “I think if you ever hit on that subject matter, you’re going to get people going because, of course, it’s a big subject matter.
“The idea was that we’re all responsible for this, that His sacrifice was for all mankind, and that for all our ills and all the things in our fallen nature,” he added. “It was a redemption, so you know, and I believe that.”
Gibson, a professing Catholic, also said he considers the Gospels to be “verifiable history,” pointing to extra-biblical historical accounts that confirm the existence of Jesus of Nazareth.
The apostles who spread the message of Christianity were willing to sacrifice their lives to spread the Gospel, he added.
“Every single one of those guys died rather than deny their belief,” said Gibson, insisting that “nobody dies for a lie.” The resurrection, however, remains the most challenging part of the story for many to accept, as it “requires the most faith and the most belief.”
Gibson added, “Who gets back up three days later after he gets murdered in public? … Buddha didn’t do that.”
In a 2022 interview with The Christian Post, Gibson revealed he’s drawn to stories that highlight redemption and the need for a Savior.
“I’ve been taught from a young age that we’re flawed, and you’re going to make mistakes,” he reflected. “We’re broken, and we need help. Usually, the best way to get help is to ask for it. And well, who do we ask? We’re asking something better than us. And the minute you acknowledge that there is something better than you, you might get something that resembles humility, which is really the key to the whole thing.”
He encouraged the next generation to “stick” to their “convictions” even though it’s “hard” in an increasingly polarized society.
“Sometimes you’re presented with choices or put in places that are very difficult, and some of those choices are hard,” he said. “You just have to examine your own conscience and take the right road, I think. … There’s no right way; there are a million wrong ways, and you just have to eliminate those or just use your best discernment to get through it.”
“But it’s hard, man,” he added. “Life’s hard. But we’re all going. We’ve all got a boulder we’re dragging.”
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com
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