The Bible History Jesus - H 2013
HistoryHistory’s record-breaking 10-part miniseries The Bible could be headed to movie theaters.
“We’re cutting a movie version right now, a three-hour version of Jesus and [we have] many, many offers from theaters globally,” executive producer Mark Burnett told The Hollywood Reporter on Monday at NBCUniversal summer press day. Burnett said the movie version will have a big focus on the Resurrection. He is eyeing a fall release.
Burnett also shared that there is a distinct possibility that more stories will be told for The Bible, a passion project for he and wife Roma Downey.
“It’s never actually stopped, but I do have scripts in my bag that I just received today for what’s next,” he told THR.
Should the story continue, the stories would fall “in the same world,” Burnett said. “We feel there is a void, and we’re filling that void.”
The Bible debuted to 13.1 million viewers March 3 and wrapped up Easter Sunday with 11.7 million viewers. Internationally, The Bible beat hockey in Canada; it was tops in Spain, and it had a 37 share in Portugal.
For Burnett, he was confident the mini would be a success, crediting God as a vital force. “It’s a God voice,” Burnett said. “It’s clearly a calling; clearly, we felt it was something we had to do, and too many things happened to explain it any other way. It’s a juggernaut, and it’s not going to slow down.”
The Bible, like History’s Hatfields & McCoys, already has proven a valuable asset to the cable network as it looks to bolster its original programming. History used Bible as a lead-in for its first original scripted drama, Vikings, which already has been renewed for a second season.
The Bible is already the fastest-selling DVD for a miniseries ever.
E-mail: Philiana.Ng@thr.com
Twitter: @insidethetube
