First Look at Jaakko Ohtonen as Jesus in Mel Gibson’s ‘The Resurrection of the Christ’ Has People Talking
Mel Gibson has officially completed principal photography on ‘The Resurrection of the Christ’, his long-awaited follow-up to ‘The Passion of the Christ’, and the first images from the set are already generating enormous buzz online.
Shared by Art Hits Hard on X, one photo shows Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen, who plays Jesus in the film, hugging members of the crew after the final day of shooting in Italy, complete with visible nail holes on his hand from the production’s makeup work.
Filming wrapped on April 30, after principal photography began at Rome’s iconic Cinecittà Studios on October 6, 2025, the same location where Gibson shot the original ‘Passion of the Christ’ more than two decades ago. Additional photography took place across a number of southern Italian locations including Matera, Ginosa, Gravina in Puglia, Torre Guaceto, Brindisi, and Craco.
Mel Gibson finishes principal photography for his upcoming film, The Resurrection of the Christ, in Italy, and here's the first look at actor Jaakko Ohtonen as Jesus Christ hugging the crew. In the image, you can even see the nail holes on Othonen's hand. Shot in two parts back… pic.twitter.com/R6kbOL0QGw
— Art Hits Hard (@nightwriter22) May 1, 2026
The entire cast of the original film has been replaced. Ohtonen, a 36-year-old Finnish actor best known for playing the warrior Wolland in Netflix’s ‘The Last Kingdom’, steps into the role of Jesus previously held by Jim Caviezel. Cuban actress Mariela Garriga takes over from Monica Bellucci as Mary Magdalene, Polish actress Kasia Smutniak plays Mary the mother of Jesus, Riccardo Scamarcio portrays Pontius Pilate, and Rupert Everett joins the cast as Abraham.
Gibson co-wrote the screenplay with Randall Wallace, the writer behind ‘Braveheart’, and has described the project as an “acid trip,” saying he had never read anything quite like the scripts. The story is expected to center on the resurrection itself, though detailed plot information is still being kept tightly under wraps.
The film is structured as a two-part release. Part One is set to open on Good Friday, March 26, 2027, with Part Two arriving exactly 40 days later on Ascension Day, May 6, 2027, a scheduling choice that reflects the religious significance embedded throughout the production.
The combined budget for both parts sits at an estimated $250 million, making it Gibson’s most expensive project to date, with each installment costing between $100 and $125 million. Lionsgate is serving as the studio partner on the project, with Gibson and Bruce Davey producing through their Icon Productions banner.
The original ‘Passion of the Christ’, released in 2004 and filmed in Aramaic, Hebrew, and Latin, grossed $610 million worldwide and became one of the highest-earning independent films in history. The bar set by that film is extraordinarily high, and with a wrapped production, an all-new cast, and a release date timed to the Christian calendar, the pressure and anticipation heading into 2027 could hardly be greater.
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