A new film from the makers of I Can Only Imagine will spotlight the so-called Jesus Movement of the 1960s and ‘70s and star two well-known actors.

The new movie Jesus Revolution will star Jim Gaffigan (Chappaquiddick, The Jim Gaffigan Show) as pastor Chuck Smith and Joel Courtney (Super 8) as Greg Laurie, who at the time was a teenager.

Smith, who passed away in 2013, founded the Calvary Chapel movement. Laurie is currently senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, Calif.

Deadline first reported the involvement of Gaffigan and Courtney. The film is in pre-production, and a release date has not been set.

“This is a distinctly American story of rebirth,” Gaffigan told Deadline. “The late 1960s and early 1970s were a time when spirituality was on the wane, leaving a lot of people searching for answers in other places. I’m excited to play a pastor who helped make a home for the people most desperate for those answers and built a congregation – a coming together of people – to make something greater than themselves.”

Joel Courtney

Jon Gunn (“The Case for Christ”) will direct from a script written by him and Jon Erwin. Kevin Downes and the Erwin Brothers are producing, while Jerilyn Esquibel is co-producing for Kingdom Story Company. Gunn and the Erwin Brothers recently teamed up on the Christian film “I Still Believe.”

“I love this era,” Gunn said. “The defiant search for truth, the fight against oppression, the hope for a better future in the midst of social turmoil. In that way, it’s not unlike our world today. And I couldn’t be more excited to work with Jim and Joel to tell this honest, captivating story that will serve as a powerful reminder that radical love really can change the world.”

The film will be made by Kingdom Story, the same company behind I Still Believe, I Can Only Imagine and Woodlawn. Jon Gunn, who directed Case for Christ, will direct Jesus Revolution. Andrew and Jon Erwin and Kevin Downes will produce it.

Jon Erwin said in May that the pandemic put them behind on production but they remain “more committed than ever” to engage the culture with movies.

“Ultimately I want to tell stories that really entertain people, that continue to lift the bar of what people think of when they think of faith-based films, and stories that bring people hope and draw them to the gospel,” Erwin stated.

“When I read the script, I was very drawn to the idea of portraying a man who is completely lost within himself and seeks to find a path and purpose during a time of national turmoil,” Courtney shared.

–Michael Foust | Metro Voice