Mel Gibson is making bold moves for his long-anticipated follow-up to the controversial 2004 blockbuster, The Passion of the Christ. The sequel, titled “The Resurrection of the Christ,” is set to feature an entirely new main cast, with the director opting for a fresh ensemble rather than de-aging his original stars.
A source close to the production told variety.com that the decision to recast the entire film was a practical one: “It made sense to recast the whole film. They would have had to do all this CGI stuff, all this digital stuff — de-aging and all that — that would have been very costly.”
Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen will step into the iconic lead role, replacing Jim Caviezel as Jesus.
The recasting extends to all major roles, with Mariela Garriga taking over the part of Mary Magdalene from Monica Bellucci. Kasia Smutniak will replace Maia Morgenstern as Mary, Mother of Jesus.
Other key roles include: Pier Luigi Pasino as the Apostle Peter, Riccardo Scamarcio as Pontius Pilate and Rupert Everett in a small but important, unspecified role.
The film’s plot will centre on the three days following Jesus’ Crucifixion on Good Friday.
“The Resurrection of the Christ” is set to be a two-part cinematic event, with the installments releasing just 40 days apart. The first movie is currently slated for release on Good Friday, March 26, 2027, and the second will follow shortly after on Ascension Day, May 6, 2027.
Gibson has been working on the sequel for years and has spoken candidly about the difficulty of bringing the complex narrative to the screen.
In a 2022 appearance on EWTN’s The World Over YouTube show, Gibson explained the non-linear structure he’s pursuing: “It’s a huge subject, and it’s not a linear narrative so that in order to have it mean something and resonate for almost anybody that watches it… You have to juxtapose the central event that I’m trying to tell with everything else around it in the future, in the past, and in other realms, and that’s kind of getting a little sci-fi out there.”
The director revealed he had struggled to choose between two vastly different finished scripts:
“I’ve got two scripts… and they’re both good,” he said. Later, during a live event with Jenni Falconer, he elaborated on the contrast: one is “very structured” and “more what you would expect,” while the other is “like an acid trip because you’re going into other realms and stuff. You’re in hell. It’s like you’re watching the angels fall. It’s crazy.”
This massive undertaking, as Gibson describes it, is clearly intended to be a deep and poignant exploration of the central story. With an entirely new cast and a potentially wild narrative structure, this sequel promises to be as ambitious and talked-about as the original.
•Featured image: Mel Gibson/Rodin Eckenroth/WireImage
