Mel Gibson’s 2-part ‘Resurrection of the Christ’ to be released starting Holy Week 2027

By Francesca Pollio Fenton

CNA Staff, Aug 6, 2025 /
14:17 pm

Lionsgate has officially announced the release dates for Mel Gibson’s highly anticipated film “The Resurrection of the Christ.”

In an X post on Aug. 5, the film company announced that the film will be split into two parts and will be released starting Holy Week in 2027.

Part 1 of the film will be released on March 26, 2027, Good Friday, and Part 2 will be released several weeks later on May 6, which will fall on the feast of the Ascension. 

On May 15 it was announced that Lionsgate had been chosen as the studio partnering with Gibson’s Icon Productions on the upcoming film.

“For many, many people across the globe, ‘The Resurrection of the Christ’ is the most anticipated theatrical event in a generation. It is also an awe-inspiring and spectacularly epic theatrical film that is going to leave moviegoers worldwide breathless,” Adam Fogelson, chair of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, said in a press release announcing the partnership.   

“Lionsgate’s brave, innovative spirit and nimble, can-do attitude have inspired me for a long time, and I couldn’t think of a more perfect distributor for ‘The Resurrection of the Christ,’” Gibson said at the time.

“I’ve enjoyed working with Adam and the team several times over recent years. I know the clever ingenuity, passion, and ambition the entire team commits to their projects and I’m confident they will bring everything they can to the release of this movie.”

This upcoming film, the sequel to “The Passion of the Christ,” will once again feature Jim Caviezel in the role of Jesus. While not much is known about the details of the film, in an interview with podcast host Joe Rogan, Gibson said the film is “very ambitious” and the story follows “the fall of the angels to the death of the last apostle.” 

He also shared that he plans to use “a few techniques,” such as CGI de-aging, on Caviezel due to the fact that over 20 years have passed since the first movie was released.

Released in 2004, “The Passion of the Christ” vividly depicts the final hours of Jesus’ life, from his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane to his crucifixion. 

The film has been the subject of debate since its release. The graphic scenes of Christ’s scourging and crucifixion sparked controversy; some critics considered it excessively violent, while others praised it for its historical authenticity and its ability to realistically convey Christ’s suffering.

In January 2004, Joaquín Navarro-Valls, then the director of the Holy See Press Office, noted that Pope John Paul II had seen the film and gave it a positive review, describing it as “the cinematographic recounting of the historical fact of the passion of Jesus Christ according to the Gospel accounts.”

Despite controversies surrounding the film, it garnered a profit of $370 million domestically with many crediting it as having opened the door to faith-based media in Hollywood.

Francesca is a staff reporter for Catholic News Agency. She received her degree in Communications with an emphasis in Digital Media from the University of Colorado – Denver. She is also in charge of the social media for Catholic News Agency.