Jesus Film Project Announces Animated JESUS Movie Slated for 2025
By Movieguide® Contributor
The Jesus Film Project is set to release an animated remake of the 1979 version of the JESUS movie in December 2025.
“Fusing unparalleled visual effects and computer graphics, the film benefits from the expertise and talent of a stellar technical and production team, whose credits include Pixar, Disney, and Star Wars,” the Jesus Film Project wrote in a press release.
Dominic Carola, who has lent his talent to projects such as THE LION KING, LILO AND STITCH and MULAN, will direct the upcoming movie.
“I feel honored to serve with this truly dream team of feature animation veterans and impressive studio industry artisans. We are working towards presenting the true story of Jesus beautifully animated and making His story more accessible to the world,” Carola said.
He added, “Leaning into a classic artistic approach, we’re combining that with ground-breaking digital innovations to deliver a visually stunning and emotionally resonant portrayal of Jesus’ life like never before.”
The Jesus Film Project recently teased the announcement of the upcoming movie on X with short snippets of the artwork for the movie.
“Our big announcement is happening this week. Any guesses about what’s coming?” the post read.
Our big announcement is happening this week.
Any guesses about what's coming? pic.twitter.com/z50faetx3t— Jesus Film® (@JesusFilm) November 27, 2023
The film will be released initially in 31 nations, and the ministry plans to translate the movie into as many translations as the 1979 JESUS movie—over 2,000 languages—according to Josh Newell, executive director of the Jesus Film Project.
Newell says that for the upcoming movie they recruited the help of artists from Pixar and Disney, such as Carola, saying the story of the Gospel demanded the highest quality of creative output.
“The standard that we’re going after is theater quality animation, because the story of Jesus is worth it,” Newell said in a promotional video on the Jesus Film website.
The ministry aims to reach the next generation by sharing the story of Jesus through the medium of animation.
“Animation is an art form. Really, you can go to middle of Africa, you can go to…Manhattan, New York City, and young people resonate with animation,” Carola said.
“You have to look at the world globally. There is a very vibrant, young generational cohort that God is raising up. And the question is, how will we, who consider ourselves leaders today, leaders in the church, how do we serve them?” Lisa Pak, director of Global Engagement with Finishing the Task, stated.
The live action JESUS movie is still making a global impact after forty years as it will be released in the Waorani dialect spoken by a tribe in Equador —the movie’s 2,100th language. Movieguide® recently reported on the significance of movie’s newest translation:
The Waorani tribe is the same tribe whose warriors martyred five American Christian missionaries, including Jim Elliot and Nate Saint, in 1956 for sharing the gospel,” CBN reported.
“The translation of our telling of Jesus’ story into the Waorani language is notable considering the history of Christianity with the Waorani tribe,” Chris Deckert, Jesus Film Project’s Director of Language Studios, said. “This initiative was made possible through collaboration between Jesus Film Project and a consortium of indigenous groups, along with the agreement and support of the Waorani elders.”
Josh Newell, executive director of Jesus Film Project, added, “The ability to release the JESUS film in Waorani is the result of our incredible team’s hard work and dedication. We want to ensure the accessibility of the film, not just in the world’s most widely spoken languages but also in the heart language of every community. We look forward to witnessing the transformative power of this film among the Waorani people.”
