Mel Gibson Meets Nuns in Rome Amid Controversy Over Film ‘Resurrection of the Christ’

Mel Gibson met a group of local nuns in Rome on Monday during some downtime from shooting his upcoming film Resurrection Of The Christ in the city – after the project sparked outrage by moving forward with a new cast.

Over 20 years after the release of his blockbuster biblical drama The Passion of the Christ, Gibson, 69, is set to return with his long-delayed follow-up film.

While the original movie, which follows the final twelve hours of Jesus Christ’s life, starred Jim Caviezel, 57, as Christ, and Monica Bellucci, 61, as Mary Magdalene, they’ve had to be recast due to the time gap – and it has caused some fan backlash.

As he stepped out in the Italian capital at the start of the week he sported his trademark rugged style.

He wore a tan Carhartt jacket over a crisp white shirt, dark jeans, black trainers and his trademark shades.

The Braveheart star looked every bit the off-duty hero as he strolled through Rome, picked up a few groceries, and even stopped for a cheerful chat with a group of nuns outside the supermarket.

Mel’s highly-anticipated sequel to the 2004 film, is moving forward with a new cast, sparking outrage from fans. 

‘It made sense to recast the whole film. They would have had to do all this CGI stuff, all this digital stuff – de-ageing and all that – that would have been very costly,’ a source close to the production told Variety.

The Resurrection of the Christ – which takes place three days after Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday – will star Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen, 36, in the role of Christ.

Meanwhile Cuban actress Mariela Garriga, 36, will take on the role of Mary Magdalene.

Ohtonen is known for playing the role of Wolland in the historical drama The Last Kingdom, which is set during the Viking invasions of 9th and 10th-century England. 

Meanwhile Garriga starred opposite Tom Cruise in the Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning films as Marie. 

The choice to recast sparked an outcry from fans, with one writing on X, ‘Recasting Jesus is blasphemous work.’

‘Caveziel must be devastated. He’s been talking about this film since 2012,’ another added of the actor, who’s a devout Roman Catholic.

‘I thought they were gonna use Jim And use CGI to make him look younger,’ someone else wrote.

‘Should’ve kept Jim Caviezel. Wonder why he left the film. Maybe script was too intense for him? Or too demanding? Idk, but Caviezel returning would made the film more powerful since you would’ve followed him from the first film.’

‘They couldn’t cast someone who at least kinda looks like Jim Caviezel?’

Others wondered if the actor and Gibson had a ‘falling out’ to prompt the decision.

‘What happened? What changed? Wasn’t Jim hyping up this movie since forever?’ one fan wondered. 

But some commenters understood that Caviezel’s age was the primary factor that required him – and other stars – to be recast.

‘Now, it makes sense why the entire cast was replaced. De-aging is not only expensive. It’s also a complicated process,’ one fan wrote before sharing their confidence in the sequel. ‘Gibson is a great director. He can still deliver a solid film with any actor.’ 

Another poster wrote, ‘Love it! Recasting is better than ‘de-aging.’

Other stars of the new cast include Polish actress Kasia Smutniak, 46, who previously starred in the TV show Domina. She will replace Maia Morgenstern as Jesus’s mother, Mary. 

The Apostle Peter will be played by Italian star Pier Luigi Pasino, who stars on Netflix’s The Law According to Lidia Poët. 

Meanwhile Pontius Pilate will be played by Riccardo Scamarcio. The Italian actor recently led the Johnny Depp-directed biopic Modi.

English actor Rupert Everett, 66, is also set to appear in the film and has an ‘unspecified small but important role’.