
Biblical Documentary ROUTE 60 Beats Box Office Expectations: ‘Bible Still Matters’
By Movieguide® Staff
ROUTE 60: THE BIBLICAL HIGHWAY topped the box office during its first two nights in theaters earlier this week and is extending its run.
The feature-length documentary, produced by Trinity Broadcasting Company, follows former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman as they visit key biblical sites along Route 60, a highway running through Israel, per Movieguide®’s review.
“Ticket sales per theater for Route 60 last night were number 1 nationwide by a wide margin!! Thank you!!” Friedman posted to X.
Ticket sales per theater for Route 60 last night were number 1 nationwide by a wide margin!! Thank you!! pic.twitter.com/MqqYZpKOci
— David M Friedman (@DavidM_Friedman) September 20, 2023
ROUTE 60 was released on Monday and was initially expected to run for two days in 1,000 theaters nationwide. Due to its success, its run has been extended through Sept. 21.
On Tuesday, ROUTE 60 “came in fourth in nationwide box office receipts, exceeding the combined receipts of the BARBIE movie and OPPENHEIMER,” The Jerusalem Post reported, noting, however, that those two movies have already been in theaters for over a month.
“The Bible still matters,” Friedman added in another X post.
Last night, the second night of the screening of Route 60: The Biblical Highway, we came in 4th nationwide in box office receipts, exceeding the combined receipts of Barbie and Oppenheimer. The Bible still matters! pic.twitter.com/CFwxtLOli9
— David M Friedman (@DavidM_Friedman) September 20, 2023
“At the end of the day, with all the efforts in society to negate the Bible, its wisdom and values, and to cast it as a myth and legend, the Bible still sells,” he continued. “We can see from the turnout that Americans have a huge thirst for more information and learning about the Bible. People still care.”
The documentary’s success “reflects a backlash against the pace at which society has changed over the last decade. People are looking for more authentic, enduring and eternal things,” Friedman added.
Part of Movieguide®’s review reads:
[Pompeo and Friedman] visit biblical sites along Route 60, a 146-mile highway running down the middle of Israel. Their journey begins in Nazareth, where Mary saw the Angel Gabriel, travels to the valley where Joshua, Moses’ successor, created an altar of stones, and stops at Joseph’s tomb and Jacob’s Well, where Jesus met the Samaritan woman. They visit the Temple Mount and the places where Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead in Jerusalem, plus Hebron, where Isaac and Ishmael buried their father, Abraham, and Beersheba, where Abraham lived most of his life.
ROUTE 60 is an inspiring, informative visit to the Holy Land. One of its greatest assets is that it visits actual archeological sites from the Bible. This gives the Bible a strong sense of historical credibility. In addition to its biblical content, ROUTE 60 promotes the biblical roots of Israel and the United States. It also discusses the Abraham Accords, which established peace between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors.
“ROUTE 60 combines the truth of the Bible with undeniable archaeological proof, and like our tour guides, Pompeo and Friedman, that’s a powerful combination!” one fan said, per the movie’s website.
“This movie embraces God’s heart to restore humanity through the actions of the righteous and the power of forgiveness,” another added.
You can read Movieguide®’s full review for ROUTE 60 here.
Movieguide® previously reported on ROUTE 60:
“Of significance to Christians, the road cuts through Nazareth, where Jesus was conceived and lived his life; Bethlehem, where Jesus was born; and Jerusalem, where Jesus died and was laid to rest,” The Daily Wire reported.
But the Biblical significance of this region spans back to thousands of years before Jesus walked the earth. King David created the capital of Jerusalem a thousand years before Jesus.
“The road also cuts through Shiloh, which for 369 years served as the center of Israel, as well as some of the most revered sites in Judaism — Rachel’s Tomb, and the Altar of Joshua, where the first real formation of a Jewish state took place,” The Daily Wire added.
“When I look at the world today, we have, to a certain extent, lost our way,” Friedman shared with Christian Post. “We lose our way because we become untethered from the principles that we as a country were founded upon.”