Cliff Curtis Prepares to Play Jesus in "Risen"

Cliff Curtis will play the role of Jesus Christ in the upcoming movie Risen.  The movie is an epic historical drama film directed by Kevin Reynolds and written by Reynolds, Paul Aiello and Karen Janszen. The film stars Joseph Fiennes, Tom Felton, Peter Firth, and Cliff Curtis. Columbia Pictures will release the film on February 19, 2016. 

In preparing for the role Jesus, Curtis stayed away from his wife and family.  He explains: "For a month I lived on my own in Malta and it was a really beautiful experience. I had very humble meals and I lived monastically pretty much," Curtis told Wenn, according to Scout. " I could not not speak to my wife because she's my other connection to the Divine. I didn't speak to anybody and I spent a lot of time in meditation and silence and would sit for hours alone."

Curtis is a New Zealand actor whose film credits include Whale Rider, Once Were Warriors, Blow, and The Dark Horse. He had television series roles on NBC's Trauma and Body of Proof, and ABC's Missing. He currently plays Travis, a lead character on the AMC horror-drama series Fear the Walking Dead, a companion series of The Walking Dead.

Curtis was surprised that he was selected for the role of Jesus. "Jesus was crucified by age 33 and I'm in my late 40s. And when you look at my work, what makes you think that I'm right for this role?" he asked. "It was a miracle. just thought I wasn't fair complexioned enough to get the role and I needed blue eyes."

Nevertheless, his Catholic background helped. "I was a devout Catholic as a child and I was an altar boy and served mass, and I did the whole thing and had the crucifix next to my bed, everything," he revealed. "So when I became an actor and the question would arise, 'What roles do you want to play?' I'd say, 'Jesus,' and it had become a running joke."

 

 

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