Mel Gibson's 'Passion of Christ' Sequel to Begin Shooting in Mid-2023

Filming for the sequel to Mel Gibson's 2004 mega-hit film, "The Passion of the Christ," will begin in the next few months, according to reports.

For years, "The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection" has been ruminating in development, but according to entertainment website World of Reel, shooting for the film could commence as early as spring, with Jim Caviezel set to return in the role of Jesus.

The original "Passion of the Christ," which was an account of the New Testament, made $612 million on a $30 million budget.

"The evangelical community considers 'The Passion' the biggest movie ever out of Hollywood, and they kept telling us that they think a sequel will be even bigger," said Oscar-nominated writer Randall Wallace during a 2016 interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

"I always wanted to tell this story," he added. "'The Passion' is the beginning, and there's a lot more story to tell."

Wallace will return as screenwriter for "The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection," World of Reel reported, noting the film will focus on the 24 hours encompassing Jesus' passion and the events that occurred three days between his crucifixion and resurrection.

Gibson previously spoke about the sequel to "The Passion of the Christ" when it was still in its early developmental stages, saying they wanted to take their time in planning the film.

"We're talking about that," he said back in 2016, according to CP Entertainment. "Of course, that is a huge undertaking. And you know, it's not 'The Passion 2.' It's called 'The Resurrection.' Of course, that's a very big subject, and it needs to be looked at because we don't want to just do a simple rendering of it — you know, read what happened.

"But in order to read it, experience, and explore probably deeper meanings of what it's about, it's going to take some doing, and Randall Wallace is up to the task."

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