Mel Gibson is back, and he’s thinking big—really big. Sources tell Deadline that his two-part “Resurrection of the Christ,” currently filming in Rome, will have each installment reportedly budgeted around $100M, making the combined $200M figure practically unheard of in today’s independent market.
This is a huge gamble for Lionsgate, which has been struggling of late, but something tells me Gibson will pull this off. Much like the original, the films are likely to be major successes with conservative and religion-leaning audiences.
Scheduled for release in 2027, the first film is set to hit theaters on Good Friday (March 26), with the second arriving forty days later on Ascension Day. Reports indicate that the scripts are being kept under wraps—a rare and risky move for a major indie release.
Word is the films will pick up after Christ’s crucifixion, moving into the resurrection and beyond. However, this isn’t your standard biblical retelling. Gibson has described the project as “super ambitious” and “an acid trip,” featuring angelic and demonic battles and Christ’s descent into hell—a semi-accessible thrill ride designed to justify the massive budget.
More curiously, to avoid “alienating” audiences—and unlike the original—the dialogue will reportedly be in English rather than Aramaic or Hebrew. Bummer. What struck many about the first film was its authenticity and the use of languages spoken during biblical times.
As previously reported, original leads Jim Caviezel and Monica Bellucci will not be returning. In their place, relatively lesser-known talents take the reins: Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen plays Jesus, Cuban actress Mariela Garriga is Mary Magdalene, Polish-born Kasia Smutniak portrays Mary, Italy’s Pier Luigi Pasino is Peter, and Riccardo Scamarcio takes on Pontius Pilate. Rupert Everett remains a mysterious addition.
One industry source put it bluntly to Deadline: “This one sells itself. Just look at the first film. People are ready to write big checks.” Then again — in case you’re not keeping track— no Caviezel, no Aramaic and seven times the budget of the original.
Of course, Gibson’s reputation as a director carries considerable weight. Films like “Braveheart,” “Apocalypto,” “Hacksaw Ridge,” and “The Passion of the Christ” have proven his worth as a filmmaker. The box office speaks for itself: “Passion” earned roughly $610 million globally on a $30 million budget and held the record as the highest-grossing R-rated film in the U.S. for two decades.
Snyder has mentioned in the past how “Sucker Punch “never really got finished correctly,” and that it was “not really the correct cut.” The extra footage is actually already shot.