A leading Roman Catholic leader who's penned a new book about Fulton J. Sheen says he hopes Oscar-winning star Jon Voight will portray the beloved New York bishop in a movie adaptation.
"This is an incredible thing. A friend of mine heard from a great admirer, his name is Jon Voight," Monsignor Hilary Franco, author of
"Bishop Sheen: Mentor and Friend," said Thursday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on
Newsmax TV.
Story continues below video.
Note: Watch Newsmax TV now on
DIRECTV Ch. 349 and
DISH Ch. 223
Get Newsmax TV on your cable system – Click Here Now
"He is so taken by this book, so I wonder, probably he might have a mind to make a movie out of it — and he would be a tremendous actor to portray Bishop Sheen."
Franco was the longtime assistant to Sheen, the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York who gained nationwide fame in the 1950s and '60s on television with his folksy, matter-of-fact parables.
Sheen was also outspoken and would not be muzzled on the issues of the day, such as opposing the Vietnam War, had an audience — huge at the time — of 40 million viewers. He died in 1979.
Franco's memoir of Sheen — written with Lisa and Geno Delfino, and published by New Hope Publications — contains some of his sermons as well as excerpts from dozens of handwritten letters the bishop wrote him.
"This should have been done a long time ago, but I did not have the time. I had other things to do … like working at the Vatican for 26 years and then I enjoyed my parish life for 19 years," said Franco, now an adviser and permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations.
Franco said Voight — who played young male escort Joe Buck in the X-rated classic "Midnight Cowboy," and is father of actress Angelina Jolie — has been in touch with his co-author Geno Delfino about the book.
"As you do know, [Voight] portrayed John Paul II. So who knows?" Franco said.
Voight's turn as the pontiff came in an acclaimed 2005 miniseries. He has also played such diverse figures as sportscaster Howard Cosell, George Washington and Franklin D. Roosevelt. He won an Oscar for best actor as a paraplegic Vietnam veteran in 1978's "Coming Home."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.