Actor and director Mel Gibson released The Pᴀssion of the Christ more than 20 years ago, which became one of the highest-grossing indie films of all time with $610 million at the worldwide box office. Now, he is following up with the long-awaited sequel, тιтled The Resurrection of the Christ, but with an entirely new cast.

Variety reports that Gibson has found a new Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene, replacing Jim Caviezel and Monica Bellucci from the original film. Jaakko Ohtonen has been cast as Jesus and Mariela Garriga as Mary Magdalene. The Resurrection of the Christ will be a two-part movie, both slated to be released in 2027.

Other cast members are also confirmed, including Kasia Smutniak replacing Maia Morgenstern as Mary, Pier Luigi Pasino being cast as Peter, Riccardo Scamarcio as Pontius Pilate, and Rupert Everett as an unidentified character. Filming for The Resurrection of the Christ is currently underway at Cinecittà Studios in Rome, where The Pᴀssion of the Christ was also sH๏τ.

The Resurrection of Christ is co-written by Gibson and Randall Wallace, and produced by Gibson and Bruce Davey under their Icon Productions banner, partnering with Lionsgate. As for the new actors, Ohtonen appears in The Last Kingdom and Vikings: Valhalla, while Garriga is known for Mission: Impossible – ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Reckoning Part One.

While Caviezel recently said that he would want to reprise the role of Jesus, a source close to the production told Variety that “it made sense to recast the whole film,” as it takes place days after the first installment. “They would have had to do all this CGI stuff, all this digital stuff — de-aging and all that — that would have been very costly,” said the source.

The Pᴀssion of the Christ depicts the 12 hours leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, while the тιтle of the sequel implies that it takes place shortly after, although further plot details are still unknown. However, despite its commercial success, The Pᴀssion of the Christ was a highly controversial film, due to historical and biblical inaccuracies and antisemitic portrayals.

The sequel’s production was delayed for several reasons, but this can partially be attributed to the controversy surrounding Gibson himself. Gibson has only directed two movies in the past 10 years, Hacksaw Ridge and Flight Risk. Regardless, Gibson is forging ahead with The Resurrection of Christ, which seems to be a mᴀssive production considering it is being split into two parts.