After Joaquin Phoenix Portrayed Jesus, Something Stunning Happened to Him

Hollywood does not have a reputation for being a focal point of faith. In fact, many Christians view Hollywood as openly hostile to traditional, Christian values.

But faith-based movies have had quite an impact on the actors involved in them. Joaquin Phoenix is the latest to discuss the personal changes that occurred to him after he portrayed Jesus in the upcoming movie Mary Magdalene.

This movie details Jesus’ final days before His crucifixion and Resurrection from the viewpoint of Mary Magdelene.

Phoenix reports his involvement in this movie has changed him in many ways. While Hollywood has thumbed its nose at Christianity and attempted to portray Christians as judgmental, Phoenix took away a totally different lesson. This experience has opened Phoenix’s eyes to the redemption that is found in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.

“I’m really interested in the idea of forgiveness,” he said “And making this movie has changed his perception of what forgiveness – a big theme in Mary Magdalene – really is. I always thought forgiving somebody was like you were absolving them of their sins or their transgressions or whatever it is they did, and I started thinking it has more to do with the person forgiving than it is for the other person, it’s such a difficult task.”

“And it’s how it changes you that is the power, right?” Phoenix continued. “Because obviously you can forgive somebody, but what is that doing? You can’t absolve them of what they did. But it changes how you feel about it, and I really liked that idea. It’s something that really moved me.”

A trailer for this movie is below. It appears that Joaquin Phoenix took great detail in his performance of Jesus. This movie opens on March 22.

While Phoenix does not currently subscribe to a certain religion, it’s obvious that this role has deeply affected him. This is a common occurrence when a Christian movie is made. Dennis Quaid also reported his role in I Can Only Imagine has helped bolster his faith:

In his younger years, there was a time when Dennis Quaid questioned his faith. He rediscovered it in the pages of the Bible. “The question I had as I went around the world was ‘Who is God?’ I became a seeker really… I read the Bible cover to cover. For me, it’s Jesus… it’s the red words of Jesus. How simple it is. There really is redemption and that was the inspiration,”  he stated.

Quaid went so far as to write his own music for his film. Check it out:

There is clearly a demand for faith-based movies. That is being proven by the stunning success of I Can Only Imagine. Perhaps Mary Magdalene will also enjoy such success

Share this if you want to see more faith-based movies!

Source: Faith It