Major backlash has erupted over Mel Gibson’s decision to cast pro-abortion Polish actress Kasia Smutniak as the Blessed Virgin Mary in The Resurrection of Christ. Given how deeply Catholic Gibson is, I’m surprised he personally approved Smutniak’s casting. Then again, perhaps Gibson stands as one of the few directors in Hollywood capable of separating an artist’s personal views from the art they create.
Reports say the pushback against Smutniak began in her native Poland, where media outlets claim so-called “far-right Catholic groups” launched the protest. In reality, that likely means conservative Christians who take their faith seriously and strive to apply the principles of Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition to daily life.
“Polish media report that supporters of the country’s conservative pro-life Law and Justice Party (PiS) wrote to Gibson’s Icon Productions to protest Smutniak’s casting. They cited her support for the Strajk Kobiet (Women’s Strike) movement — the silhouette of which is a suffragette with a red lightning bolt — that led the nationwide campaign against Poland’s strict abortion laws,” Variety reported.
As of this writing, Gibson hasn’t commented on the controversy. The veteran actor-director has long stood firm in his conservative values and Catholic faith, even in a Hollywood climate that despises such open defiance of its progressive ideology. Despite decades of controversies, Gibson has still managed to maintain strong friendships with Andrew Garfield, Robert Downey Jr., and Jodie Foster, to name a few.
Smutniak hasn’t issued any statements rejecting Gibson’s beliefs. The question worth asking is whether it’s reasonable to expect every actor in a religious film to share the faith or moral convictions of the character they portray. I don’t necessarily think it is.
Breitbart reported that The Resurrection of the Christ recast all the main roles from the 2004 classic The Passion of the Christ. Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen now plays Jesus, while Cuban actress Mariela Garriga steps in as Mary Magdalene. A source close to the production revealed that Gibson initially considered using digital de-aging to keep the original stars but ultimately decided against it.
“They would’ve had to do all this CGI stuff, all this digital de-aging — and that would’ve been very costly,” the source explained. This would have also cheapened the look of the film and with the fast moving improvements in CGI effects, the film would eventually look outdated. Casting younger actors for the roles was definitely the right call.
Given how stunningly the original film turned out, I think we should trust Gibson’s judgment when it comes to casting. After all, most of the cast in The Passion of the Christ weren’t Christians either, yet several of them later converted to Catholicism because of the film’s powerful message.
One fascinating fact about Gibson’s first Jesus film: actor Jim Caviezel was struck by lightning — twice. He later underwent two heart surgeries, one of which was open-heart. But as a devout Catholic, Caviezel endured the suffering and went on to deliver one of the most moving portrayals of Christ ever captured on film.
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