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Filming of the highly anticipated follow-on from The Passion of The Christ is done and dusted.

The Resurrection of The Christ now appears to be heading towards an intense period of post-production.

Mel Gibson’s two-part sequel, which will be based on the apostolic accounts of the resurrection of Jesus, has a release date of 26 March and 6 May 2027.

The films’ release dates align with Easter and Ascension Day.

Speculation about the news was sparked by multiple behind-the-scenes videos shared online through the YouTube account Verité Vision on 1 May.

They show Mel Gibson with the Lionsgate film crew standing on a beach to mark the end of 134 days of filming.

Originally set for an August 2025 start, Variety noted that actual filming began in October.

Verite Vision’s apparent video diary was posted in six parts and begins with a compilation of rare photos capturing actor camps, director shots, props and more.

As reported by The Daily Declaration in detail last April, The Passion’s sequel was filmed at Cinecittà Studios in Italy.

A New Jesus: The Recasting Controversy

A big change since then was Jim Caviezel’s exit due to the twenty-year age gap between the two scripts.

The Hollywood Reporter verified a NYPost Page Six exclusive, confirming the 57-year-old Caviezel, as well as Mary actress Monica Bellucci, were no longer part of the project.

Caviezel was 33 when he filmed The Passion.

Sources allegedly told Page Six that the reasons for The Resurrection’s recasting included the process of having to de-age the actor.

“They would have to do a lot of work with the original actors. Digital stuff, plus the scheduling.”

According to Page Six, the decision wasn’t arrived at easily.

Caviezel was replaced by Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen, known for his role in the Viking TV period drama The Last Kingdom.

‘Mind-Blowing’ and ‘Unforgettable’: What to Expect

Discussing the new film, Randall Wallace, who co-wrote the script with Gibson, offered a teaser to the Intersections podcast.

The Resurrection of The Christ, he declared, will be “unlike anything anyone has ever seen. It will be a movie that will be mind-blowing.”

“It may be something that is disturbing and haunting, but it will be unforgettable.”

Reluctant to reveal a whole lot, Wallace, who has studied the resurrection closely, said,

“I dare anyone to come up with an assertion that there is a bigger story to tell than the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

“The notion that here are these common people — these disciples — you know, fishermen, tax collectors, prostitutes, and tavern owners.”

“They followed this man Jesus,” Wallace recalled in awe, “and they believed in Him. Now He’s gone, and they’re terrified.”

“Three days later, it doesn’t matter what you do to them; they will not stop saying they’ve seen Him alive.”

Talking with a friend who asserted he no longer believed Jesus said He was the way, Wallace said he can’t explain it.

Other than to say, “I know Jesus said He was the way, not a way.”

“Because if He had said, ‘I am a way,’ no one would have cared, right?”

They crucified him because of it, Wallace remarked.

Gibson and Wallace: A Partnership Built on Purpose

A lifelong Baptist, Wallace has worked at length with the blunt-talking, dedicated Catholic and Australian Hollywood legend.

Some of their major film credits include the blockbusters Braveheart, We Were Soldiers, and Hacksaw Ridge, among others.

Gibson apparently told Wallace he was going to have a Mass said for him.

This was to help Wallace during the writing process, Gibson said, “because the devil was going to come after him.”

He added that writing The Passion’s sequel would be “the greatest challenge he could really take on.”

Sharing some insight into how the film came about, Gibson then asserted that “This can’t be about money.”

“It can’t be to prove anything to anybody. Our hearts have to be pure.”

“I knew at that moment,” Wallace said, “how dedicated Gibson was, and that was really going to be a ride.”