Overview
- Variety reports Mel Gibson has been receiving input from excommunicated Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò on The Resurrection of the Christ, while a source told TMZ Viganò only visited the set and is not consulting.
- Both outlets note Viganò was on set during location work south of Rome, with Variety citing Matera among the exterior sites now in use.
- Viganò, a former Vatican ambassador to the U.S., was excommunicated in 2024 for rejecting Pope Francis’ authority and the Second Vatican Council, and he is known for staunch conservative positions.
- Production began in October at Cinecittà’s Studio 22 with a fully recast ensemble, including Jaakko Ohtonen as Jesus, Mariela Garriga as Mary Magdalene, and Kasia Smutniak taking over the role of Mary.
- Icon Productions is making the two-part film with Lionsgate for a planned 2027 release, employing more than 500 crew in Rome, and Gibson has described the scripts co-written with Randall Wallace as a non-linear, metaphysical “acid trip.”