Mel Gibson has revealed the first image from ‘The Resurrection of the Christ,’ his follow-up to “The Passion of the Christ.” That’s Jaakko Ohtonen above, replacing Jim Caviezel, as Jesus Christ.
Gibson also confirmed that principal photography wrapped after a 134-day shoot.
However, alongside the first-look reveal came news of significant release-date changes. ‘Part One’ has been delayed slightly, moving from March 26, 2027, to May 6, 2027. The bigger shift affects ‘Part Two,’ which has now been pushed back an entire year, from May 6, 2027, to May 25, 2028.
Gibson said both films are now scheduled to premiere on Ascension Day, the Christian holiday commemorating Jesus ascending into heaven.
Caleb Deschanel, who shot ‘Passion,’ is not returning as cinematographer and has been replaced by Robrecht Heyvaert, whose credits include the last two “Bad Boys” movies and last year’s Cillian Murphy–starring “Steve.”
There will be a significant amount of VFX used in the film, which Gibson has described 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.
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 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.
“A Statement” stars Paul Rudd, Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, John Turturro, Jason Clarke, Dylan Baker, and Tatiana Maslany. The film marks the return of Tom McCarthy, a filmmaker we haven’t heard from in a while.