Jesus is Coming!

Samuel Goldwyn Films has announced plans to release a new New Testament adaptation called The Resurrection of the Christ (with no direct connection to Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ) in theaters around Easter, 2011. No casting has been announced yet, but the movie is expected to be "as much about the key players as it is about Jesus" (which include Pontius Pilate, Herod Antipas, Caiaphas and Judas) and to "bring in the Gladiator dimension of the first century against the political milieu of the time." The Resurrection of the Christ will be directed by Jonas McCord, who made his debut in 2001 with the religious drama The Body (starring Antonio Banderas) and the script is by Dan Gordon (cowriter of Wyatt Earp, The Hurricane). Filming is expected to start sometime in 2010 at locations in Israel, Morocco and Europe, last ten weeks and is budgeted at around $20 million.