Mel Gibson’s sequel to his 2004 religious blockbuster, Resurrection of the Christ, already faces a big challenge ahead of its anticipated 2026 theatrical release. Gibson, a 2-time Oscar winner who had an impressive critical run as a director before his action thriller misfire Flight Risk flopped at the 2025 box office earlier this year, has hinted that his sequel to The Passion of the Christ may end up being a two-part feature film endeavor. The Passion of the Christ earned roughly $612 million at the worldwide box office against a budget of $30 million, making it the fifth highest-grossing movie of 2004.

Jim Caviezel, who will star as Herod in the highly anticipated religious epic Zero A.D. that is expected to be released in December 2025, is also expected to reprise his role as Jesus in Resurrection of the Christ. Additionally, actors Maia Morgenstern and Francesco De Vito, who played Mary and Peter in The Passion of the Christ, respectively, are also expected to reprise their roles in Resurrection. While maintaining key cast members, particularly the lead actor, is one of the crucial factors in ensuring the success of a movie sequel, the more than 20-year gap between the two films raises some obvious concerns.

Resurrection Of The Christ Is Expected To Bring Back Jim Caviezel As Jesus With De-Aging CGI

Gibson Will Use The Same De-Aging Tech Used In Scorsese’s The Irishman

During a recent interview on The Joe Rogan Experience in January 2025, Gibson confirmed that he plans to bring Caviezel back to play Jesus in Resurrection of the Christ. He also noted during that interview that he would have to use “a few techniques” that are available nowadays to be able to pull that off, pointing at technologies like CGI and de-aging effects that have become more prominent and convincing in film and television. Some recent projects, such as Apple TV+’s Lady in the Lake, have achieved extremely, almost eerily, lifelike portrayals of actors such as Natalie Portman.

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With the potential return of not only Caviezel but also Maia Morgenstern and Francesco De Vito, it looks like Gibson and Resurrection of the Christ will be forced to rely heavily on de-aging technology. While de-aging technology can be distracting in some cases, audiences will likely become more used to it over time as it improves with increasingly astounding results, which is the hope for Resurrection of the Christ. According to Collider, Resurrection of the Christ will use the same de-aging technology used in Martin Scorsese’s 2019 film The Irishman, which was mostly well-received.

De-Aging Jesus Is A Challenge For The Passion Of The Christ 2

It Will Have To Avoid Becoming A Distraction That Will Ruin The Film

While de-aging CGI has come a long way and can be very impressive, it’s still difficult to get right, especially in motion. It will likely also represent a significant cost in what Gibson plans as a very ambitious movie, considering that The Irishman’s budget was $160 million.

Given that Caviezel will have to be de-aged for most, if not all, of the entire movie, which takes place three days after the events of The Passion of the Christ, the success of the de-aging technology will essentially be linked to the success of the sequel. The Passion of the Christ did not have to deal with de-aging concerns, so there’s a chance it may be more challenging (or expensive) than Gibson anticipates.

Resurrection Of The Christ Will Likely Still Be A Big Hit

Caviezel’s Last Faith-Based Movie Was A Surprise Box Office Hit

Despite these newfound challenges, Resurrection of the Christ will still likely pull in a strong box office performance based on how well its predecessor did. It will be interesting to see just how big it can be. It might not achieve the same level as The Passion of the Christ’s record-breaking performance, especially if Gibson goes through with his ambitious plan to make Resurrection a two-part feature. Gibson may learn from Kevin Costner’s overly zealous approach to his two-part Horizon franchise. That said, recent faith-based blockbusters, such as Sound of Freedom (starring Caviezel) and The Chosen, have performed quite well, which is promising for Resurrection of the Christ.

Source: Joe Rogan, Collider