Cartoon Jesus to hit theaters: Will moviegoers pay?

Yahoo

07-04-2025

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(NewsNation) — Angel Studios is coming out with a new movie, just in time for Easter. After shattering box office expectations with their sleeper hit 'Sound of Freedom,' despite some controversy, the startup studio is hoping for another hit.
This time around, the movie's director brings a new perspective to a story that goes back 2,000 years: the life of Christ.
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'The King of Kings' is an animated feature film directed by Seong-Ho Jang, of South Korea, a veteran in the film industry in Asia. It's the story of Jesus as told by Charles Dickens, one of English Literature's greatest storytellers, to his son Walter.
The animated film, which is being released on April 11 in nearly 50 countries around the world, boasts a star-studded cast: Kenneth Branaugh (Charles Dickens); Uma Thurman (Catherine Dickens); Pierce Brosnan (Pontius Pilate); Mark Hamill (King Herod); Ben Kingsley (Caiaphus) and Forest Whitaker (Peter).
It may surprise fans of Dickens that the Victorian author, who penned classics such as 'A Christmas Carol,' 'David Copperfield' and 'Great Expectations,' wrote a book about the life of Jesus for his young children. In fact, he never intended it to be read by the public. But it was published in 1934, 64 years after his death.
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After reading the book, the film's director decided he had to make it into a movie.
'As a Christian myself, I always wanted to tell the story of Jesus to other people,' Jang told NewsNation. 'And as a fan of Charles Dickens, I read all of his books, but it is only recently that I found out that there is a book he wrote called 'The Life of Our Lord,' so after reading it I thought it would be a very interesting and unique if I was to tell the story of Jesus from the perspective of Charles Dickens.'
Jang turned to Angel Studios in the United States with their recent success delivering faith-based content to audiences through a community-driven, crowd-funding business model. In 2023, their indie film 'Sound of Freedom' shook up Hollywood, grossing over $14 million in its opening weekend.
South Korea, where Jang has made hundreds of movies, has the largest Christian population in Asia, but is still a tough environment for Christians, at times, and faith-based content. 'There are a lot of people who are opposed to the Christian populations,' he said.
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Jang hopes the film will reach not just Christians, but non-Christians as well. Since he confesses to being an introvert, he says he hopes the film can share the story of Jesus, even in places where religion is banned, such as North Korea.
'There is no possibility for the film to be released in North Korea. I know that, but I wish that someday it can be released in North Korea so people there can know the message of Jesus,' he said.
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