A Life of Jesus: Martin Scorsese to film his adaptation of Shūsaku Endō’s book later this year

While enjoying a deluge of praise for his latest awards contender, Killers of the Flower Moon, Martin Scorsese is already teasing his next project. Last summer, after attending the Global Aesthetics of the Catholic Imagination conference in Italy, Scorsese said he met with Pope Francis and intended to make a film about Jesus Christ. A portion of Scorsese’s loyal fanbase rejoiced at the idea, and now new details about his plans have come to light. Speaking with the LA Times, the legendary filmmaker says he’s rolling cameras on the film A Life of Jesus later this year.

A Life of Jesus is based on Shūsaku Endō’s book of the same name. The story focuses on a simple and powerful retelling of the life of Christ as seen through the eyes of a Japanese novelist. Kent Jones, a critic, filmmaker, and former mainstay of the New York Film Festival, co-wrote the script. Rumored to be set in modern times, Scorsese says he expects the film to run for 80 minutes, with most of the feature “focusing on Jesus’ core teachings in a way that explores the principles but doesn’t proselytize.”

“I’m trying to find a new way to make it more accessible and take away the negative onus of what has been associated with organized religion,” Scorsese says. The lauded filmmaker adds, “Right now, ‘religion,’ you say that word and everyone is up in arms because it’s failed in so many ways. But that doesn’t mean necessarily that the initial impulse was wrong. Let’s get back. Let’s just think about it. You may reject it. But it might make a difference in how you live your life — even in rejecting it. Don’t dismiss it offhand. That’s all I’m talking about. And I’m saying that as a person who’s going to be 81 in a couple of days. You know what I’m saying?”

In 1988, Scorsese brought The Temptation of Christ to screens, starring Willen Dafoe as Jesus. Harvey Keitel played Judas, and Barbara Hershey played Mary Magdalene. The controversial film focuses on Jesus Christ’s life, his journey through life as he faces the struggles all humans do, and his final temptation on the cross.

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