Coming to a Theatre Near You: Mary, the Mother of the Christ

Interestingly enough, they didn't title it Mary, the Mother of God. Hat tip to Deacon Greg here and Barbara Nicolosi.

The Hollywood Reporter tells us:

Camilla Belle, who is onscreen in "Push," which opens Friday, has been cast as Mary. Jonathan Rhys Meyers will take on the double role of Gabriel and Lucifer, while Peter O'Toole is set as Symeon, who meets Mary and her family in the temple shortly after Jesus' birth.

The filmmakers are seeking Al Pacino and Jessica Lange for the respective roles of Herod and Anna the Prophetess.

Argentinean director Alejandro Agresti ("The Lake House") will direct the film, scheduled to begin shooting in May in Morocco with production partner Dune Films. Benedict Fitzgerald, who co-wrote "Passion," wrote the "Mary" screenplay with Barbara Nicolosi.

Mary Aloe and Rodrigo Berlanga are producing. The executive producers are Mike Dolan, Mauricio Sanchez and James Volk.

Although New Line recently told the story of Jesus' birth in "The Nativity Story," released in December 2006, to modest boxoffice returns, Aloe said of her project: "This is not a Christmas movie. This is a part of Mary's life that has never been shown on the big screen before. It takes us through Mary's youth, young love, her life as a new mother and the triumph through the absolute terror of Herod the Great's reign. It is truly a story of real female empowerment."

Is it sacrilegious to say that Mary's kinda....hot?

On a more serious note, I wonder if this will be filled with as many theological inaccuracies as The Passion of the Christ was? I liked The Nativity Story so I'm hoping for the best for this project. But who knows? Looks like they're trying for some star power here too with Pacino.