While Hollywood has long been known as a breeding ground for hedonism and anti-Christian sentiments, it seems the string of faith-based films to come out of America’s movie capital in recent years has had a profound effect on its actors. As in such with Joaquin Phoenix.
From Andrew Garfield’s role in the movie Silence to Dennis Quaid’s part in I Can Only Imagine, actors of all religious backgrounds have professed “falling in love with Jesus” on set and even reconnecting with their faith roots through their characters.
While not everyone proclaims a full transformation or conversion, it appears that no one can really dive into the story of Jesus without being captivated by the selfless love, mercy, and forgiveness that he practiced as well as he preached.
“What was really easy was falling in love with this person, was falling in love with Jesus Christ,” said Garfield after preparing for his role as a Jesuit priest in 2016’s Silence. “That was the most surprising thing… That was the most remarkable thing — falling in love, and how easy it was to fall in love with Jesus.”
Now, Joaquin Phoenix is professing a parallel experience after assuming the role of Jesus Christ in the 2018 faith-based film Mary Magdalene, which chronicles Jesus’ last days on earth through the lens of Mary Magdalene, played by Rooney Mara.
While Phoenix does not currently prescribe to any particular religion, he admits that playing the part of Jesus total revolutionized his perspective on forgiveness.
“I’m really interested in the idea of forgiveness,” he told the Press Association. “And making this movie has changed his perception of what forgiveness — a big theme in Mary Magdalene — really is. I always thought forgiving somebody was like you were absolving them of their sins or their transgressions or whatever it is they did, and I started thinking it has more to do with the person forgiving than it is for the other person, it’s such a difficult task.”
“And it’s how it changes you that is the power, right?” the actor continued. “Because obviously you can forgive somebody, but what is that doing? You can’t absolve them of what they did. But it changes how you feel about it, and I really liked that idea. It’s something that really moved me.”