Mel Gibson’s sequel to the 2004 blockbuster The Passion of the Christ will be split into two parts, with the first film following the story of what took place between Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, according to a new report.
The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection, Part 1, will be released in 2025 and focus on the “events that occurred three days between the crucifixion and resurrection when Jesus Christ descended to Abraham’s Bosom to preach and resurrect Old Testament saints,” according to the movie’s official description at IMDB.com, which is updated by the filmmakers and publicists themselves.
Jordan Ruimy, a veteran movie journalist at WorldofReel.com, reported in a Nov. 2 story that a rumor had been circulating about the movie being split. Ruimy quoted lead actor Jim Caviezel as hinting at a multi-part series.
Gibson directed the first film and is helming this project, too. It reportedly has not begun filming.
“I asked him [Gibson] would be ready to go in January, he said, ‘yeah, maybe.’ I said, ‘How about the end of fall,’ he said, ‘Yeah, maybe.’ So who knows … it might be two films, maybe three, but I think it’s two,” Caviezel said.
In a separate interview, Caviezel said, “Mel [Gibson] took me through all of the scenes, and I was on the floor crying. … It’ll be one of the best things you’ve ever seen.”
Ruimy reported that production is “possibly starting in January in Mexico.”
Gibson is writing the screenplay with Randall Wallace, who also wrote Braveheart (1995), Pearl Harbor (2001) and Secretariat (2010).
Francesco De Vito will portray Peter, while Maia Morgenstern will play Mary, according to IMDB.com. Both had the same roles in the 2004 movie.
The Passion of the Christ remains the top-grossing Christian-themed movie of all time and ranked No. 1 at the box office for four weekends in 2004. It grossed $370 million domestically and followed the story of Jesus’ final hours before His crucifixion.
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