A sequel to The Passion Of The Christ is coming – and the Internet’s rather confused about it.
Reports emerged this week that the sequel to the 2004 Biblical epic, which was directed by Mel Gibson and tells the story of the death of Jesus Christ, is set to start filming next year.
The film largely focuses on the last 12 hours of Jesus’s life, including his betrayal by Judas Iscariot, his crucifixion and briefly, his resurrection. However, given the plot of the film, some fans were confused as to why the sequel was being made.
“How much more passion can he have at this point?” one X/Twitter joked.
“Didn’t he die at the end?” another questioned.
A third wrote: “why is there a part 2 i thought bro already went to heaven or some shit”.
How much more passion can he have at this point
— Drink More Water | Get More Sleep 🐬 (@hughart_michael) September 18, 2024
Didn’t he die at the end?
— dpat (@HalfBaked802) September 18, 2024
Can’t wait for a Zombie Jesus flick
— JacobyBoyer (@Pirate_Angel_) September 19, 2024
Is he coming back for revenge?
— Gaming Big Brain (@GamingBigBrain) September 19, 2024
Someone else found a way to explain why a sequel could be justified. “So in all seriousness, my guess this will tell the story in during the period of his resurrection to his eventual ascendancy to heaven,” they said.
The sequel has been in development since at least 2016, with co-writer Randall Wallace confirming it would focus on the resurrection of Jesus. In 2020, actor Jim Caviezel said that, after years of rumours: “Mel Gibson just sent me the third picture, the third draft, It’s coming. It’s called The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection. It’s going to be the biggest film in world history.”
The Passion of the Christ was a huge box office hit when it was released, grossing $612million (£476million) worldwide off of a $30million (£23million) budget.
However, it proved very divisive, with criticism levelled at the film’s violence as well as accusations of anti-Semitism.