Mel Gibson finally gave fans a massive update on the long rumoured sequel to his 2004 mega-hit The Passion of the Christ, and honestly, it sounds like he’s aiming to take things to a whole other level. While chatting with Joe Rogan on his podcast, Gibson dropped that he’s hoping to start filming The Resurrection of the Christ next year. It’s a solid title, but we were hoping for 2 Passion 2 Christ, alas. And, of course, he shared some juicy details about what we can expect—including who’s coming back to play Jesus.
“I’m hoping next year sometime,” Gibson said. “There’s a lot required because it’s an acid trip. I’ve never read anything like it.” Apparently, the script has been a serious labour of love, written by Gibson himself alongside his brother and Braveheart screenwriter Randall Wallace. Gibson also revealed that Jim Caviezel, who played Jesus in the first movie, is coming back to reprise the role, but there’s a bit of a catch. Since it’s been over 20 years since the first film, Gibson said they’re planning to use some CGI magic to de-age Caviezel. We now live in a world where the Son of God and occasional carpenter is getting a digital makeover.
What is ‘The Resurrection of the Christ’ Going to Be About?
The sequel will obviously focus on Jesus’ resurrection, picking up right where The Passion of the Christ left off. But don’t expect it to stop there. According to Gibson, the movie is going to cover a massive timeline, stretching “from the fall of the angels to the death of the last apostle.” So he’s not aiming high, then.
“My brother and I and Randall all sort of congregated on this. So there’s some good heads put together, but there’s some crazy stuff. And I think in order to really tell the story properly you have to really start with the fall of the angels, which means you’re in another place, you’re in another realm. You need to go to hell. You need to go to Sheol.”
Gibson didn’t hold back when talking about how ambitious this project is. “It’s about finding the way in that’s not cheesy or too obvious,” he said. “I think I have ideas about how to do that and how to evoke things and emotions in people from the way you depict it and the way you shoot it. So I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. It’s not going to be easy and it’s going to require a lot of planning and I’m not wholly sure I can pull it off to tell you the truth. It’s super ambitious. But I’ll take a crack at it because that’s what you got to do, right, walk up to the plate, right?”
Stay tuned to Collider for more updates on The Resurrection of the Christ.
