Christian cinema

[[file:Ben_hur_1959_poster.jpg|thumb|165px|right|''Ben-Hur'' (1959) poster.]]
{{Film}}{{christianity}}
'''Christian cinema'''&nbsp;— also called '''spiritual movies''', '''faith movies''', '''biblical movies''' or '''Christsploitation'''&nbsp;— is a movie genre and subset of religious cinema.{{efn|Because Christianity is not the only religion in the world nor the only religion to have movies about it.}} The genre consists of movies that either have their storyline inspired by some [[Christian]] [[biblical]] texts, present Christian moral themes or messages, and are produced primarily for a Christian audience.{{efn|Usually they are interdenominational, but some films may be targeted towards a specific denomination of Christianity.}} 

A fair number of these have been made by major [[Hollywood]] studios (particularly when biblical epics were profitable in the 1950s and 1960s), though ultimately most of them are shat out by a decentralized network of independent film companies, collectively known as the '''Christian film industry'''. They are more or less treated as a "frontier" of Christian media and their [[culture wars]], and while there are some serious Christian films&nbsp;— that are critically well-received and even considered culturally important&nbsp;— most of them range from below mediocre, to [[Fun:Shit|white-hot trash]].

==History==
===The beginnings===
The paths of cinema and Christianity are believed to have met at some point following the publication of {{wpl|Athanasius Kircher|Athanasius Kircher's}} 1646 book ''Ars Magna Lucis et Umbrae'' that described the {{wpl|Magic lantern}}&nbsp;— which was an early form of a image projector. As one would expect, it being abused was one of the earliest thing to happen, with individual priests (as well as [[freemasons]]) starting to use them to [[scam|trick]] their [[mark|naive followers]] that they wielded Godly powers of manipulating [[light]]. They were also used by [[missionaries]] traveling in [[Africa]] around 1800s, with them using the magic lanterns to demonstrate the [[gospel]] to the African people.<ref>VERMEIR, KOEN. 2005. “The Magic of the Magic Lantern (1660–1700): On Analogical Demonstration and the Visualization of the Invisible.” The British Journal for the History of Science 38(2): 127–59. doi: 10.1017/S0007087405006709.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Horne |first= Silvester C.|date=2006 |title=  David Livingstone |publisher= Kessinger Publishing |page=76 |isbn= 1-4254-9628-8 }}</ref>

''{{wpl|Vie et Passion du Christ|| (Life and Passion of the Christ),}}'' a French movie that was released in ''ten different incarnations'' between 1897 and 1914, is considered the first major narrative film (or films rather) to have a Christian theme. As with the magic lantern exploits, this thing was conceived as [[Catholic Church]] [[propaganda]] by presenting biblical stories to mass audiences for educational and spiritual purposes. Its release paved the way for other religious films and the development of Christian cinema, as it was one of the first films to be shown in a commercial context and had a significant impact in film history.<ref>{{cite book |last= Shepherd|first=David |date=2016 |title= The Silents of Jesus in the Cinema (1897-1927) |publisher= Taylor & Francis |page=3-9, 27 |isbn= 9781317806738}}</ref>

===1910s and 1920s (A time of innovation)===
The 1910s saw the first feature-length Christian-themed movies, with some of the earliest being 1911's ''{{wpl|L'Inferno}}'' and 1912's ''{{wpl|From the Manger to the Cross||.}}''<ref> Havely, Nick, 'Epilogue: Dante and Early Italian Cinema: The 1911 Milano-Films Inferno and Italian Nationalism', in Aida Audeh, and Nick Havely (eds), Dante in the Long Nineteenth Century: Nationality, Identity, and Appropriation (Oxford, 2012; online edn, Oxford Academic, 24 May 2012), https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199584628.003.0019, accessed 15 Oct. 2025.</ref><ref name="LydenRoutledge2009">{{cite book |last= Detweiler |first=Craig |editor-last1=Lyden |editor-first1=John |date=2009 |title=The Routledge Companion to Religion and Film |publisher= Taylor & Francis|chapter=6. Christianity|isbn=9781135220662 }}</ref>{{rp|110}} Another notable film, though not solely a Christian movie, was D.W. Griffith's 1916 epic anthology film ''{{wpl|Intolerance (film)|Intolerance}}'' (ironic considering what Griffith's [[The Birth of a Nation|best known film is]]), which intercuts four historical storylines, one of which depicts the events surrounding the [[crucifixion]] of [[Christ]] as a Judean story of religious intolerance, with the sequence considered a monumental achievement in early cinema.<ref name="LydenRoutledge2009"/>{{rp|110}}

In the 1920s, the two notable Christian films were Cecil B. DeMille's epic ''The Ten Commandments'' (1923) and ''Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'' (1925), which established the Bible epic genre. Coincidentally, these two films were later remade in the 1950s.<ref name="LydenRoutledge2009"/>{{rp|110, 111}} Another influential film was Carl Theodor Dreyer's ''{{wpl|The Passion of Joan of Arc}}'' (1928), a humanist drama focusing on the trial of [[Joan of Arc]] that became a classic for its artful use of close-ups and the lightning-in-a-bottle performance by {{wpl|Renée Jeanne Falconetti}} as title character.<ref>{{cite book |last=  Villarejo|first=Amy |date=2013 |title= Film Studies: The Basics |publisher= Taylor & Francis|page= 40|isbn=9781135011772}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Dixon |first=Wheeler Winston |date= 2015|title=Black and White Cinema: A Short History |publisher= Rutgers University Press |page=48 |isbn=9780813572444 }}</ref><ref name="LydenRoutledge2009"/>{{rp|113}}

A less impressive yet somewhat well-known 1928 Christian-themed movie with a female protagonist was DeMille's ''[[The Godless Girl]]'', which is a early progenitor of the [[wishful thinking]]-driven Christian films in which everything just aligns in favor of the Christians over [[atheists]]. While not completely trashed by the critics, it was a box-office disaster in the U.S. in 1928, failing to recoup its costs primarily due to its outdated silent film format, as at the time, sound films were becoming a thing. Nevertheless, it was pretty big in in the [[Soviet Union]]{{efn|Albeit heavily edited, with the main character's conversion to Christianity being removed to instead make it a propaganda piece promoting atheism and highlighting American police brutality.}} and the [[Weimar Republic]], with certain [[Adolf Hitler]] liking it so much that he sent a fan letter to its star, Lina Basquette.<ref>{{cite book |last= Talbot |first= Margaret|date=November, 2012 |title=The Entertainer: Movies, Magic, and My Father's Twentieth Century |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Entertainer/rtbW9oDRYiMC?hl=en |publisher=Penguin Publishing Group |isbn=9781101597057}}</ref>

===1930s and 1940s (Popularity increase)===
The 1930s did not produce overtly "Christian" films in the modern sense, but ''{{wpl|The Sign of the Cross (1932 film)|The Sign of the Cross}}'' (1932; dir. Cecil B. DeMille) and ''{{wpl|Gabriel Over the White House}}'' (1933) were early influential films with religious or divine themes. ''The Sign of the Cross'' is notable for being one of the first films that led to protests by Christian groups (including by the original playwright's daughter, Dorothea Barrett) and tried to get the film [[Cancel culture|cancelled]], as it was a {{wpl|Pre-Code Hollywood|pre-code movie}} with explicit content (particularly {{wpl|Claudette Colbert||'s}} milk bath scene and a depiction of [[Homosexuality|same-sex attraction]]).<ref>{{cite book |last= Pollard |first= Tom|date=2015 |title=Sex and Violence: The Hollywood Censorship Wars |publisher= Taylor & Francis|chapter= 6. The Evangelical Code |isbn=9781317252207}}</ref> Meanwhile, ''Gabriel Over the White House''&nbsp;— co-produced by {{wpl|William Randolph Hearst}}&nbsp;— became controversial for its flirtation with [[fascism]] and [[Christian nationalism]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Kuklick|first=Bruce | date= 2022|title=Fascism Comes to America: A Century of Obsession in Politics and Culture |publisher=  University of Chicago Press|page=27 |isbn= 9780226822457}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last= Carmichael|first=Deborah |date= |title= Hollywood's White House: The American Presidency in Film and History|publisher= University Press of Kentucky |chapter=Gabriel Over the White House (1933): William Randolph Hearst's Fascist Solution for the Great Depression |isbn= 9780813137964}}</ref> Another notable film was ''{{wpl|The Great Commandment}}'' (1939), a costume drama focused on village life between Jerusalem and Jericho rather than a direct depiction of Jesus.

The volume of Christian-themed movies increased during the 1940s. Notable films from this time include {{wpl|Sergeant York (film)|''Sergeant York''}} (1941), {{wpl|One Foot in Heaven|''One Foot in Heaven''}} (1941), {{wpl|The Devil and Daniel Webster (film)|''The Devil and Daniel Webster''}} (1941), and {{wpl|Heaven Can Wait (1943 film)|''Heaven Can Wait''}} (1943). The increase in Christian movies in the 1940s stemmed from the growth of film as a popular medium, the emergence of Christian filmmakers and distributors, and the use of biblical stories as compelling narratives for audiences familiar with them. Pioneers such as Irwin Moon and Carlos Baptista established studios for [[evangelism]], while events such as [[World War II]] made people more reflective and open to spiritual themes.

===1950s and early 1960s (The Biblical epics)===
In the 1950s, many religious epic movies were made to compete with the growing popularity of TV, to draw people back to cinemas, and to use the big visual appeal of large-format, Technicolor films. At the time, there was a conservative social environment and a common knowledge of Bible stories, which led studios to explore more daring themes without breaking the production code rules. Plus, the post-war economy was strong, giving studios the money to make big, expensive films.

The 1950s and '60s were when Christian cinema arguably peaked, in terms of success both critically and commercially.  Hollywood put out large budget epics such as ''Quo Vadis'' (1951), ''The Ten Commandments'' (1956), and the 11-time Academy Award-winning ''Ben-Hur'' (1959). This was also at a time when Christian values of that era were tested in the backdrop of the Cold War.

[[Stanley Kubrick]]'s ''Spartacus'' (1960) was a notable exception to Christian cinema insofar as not being particularly preachy, and for slipping in a homoerotic scene that made it past the censors until rerelease in 1967. It was exceptional for several reasons: being directed by a Jew, being the first film to openly break the [[Hollywood blacklist]] by having screenwriter Dalton Trumbo listed in the credits, and for overlaying subtle [[civil rights]] and anti-[[McCarthyism]] themes.

Eventually, the biblical epic genre became oversaturated and audiences started to turn away from it. The downward trend was present not just in biblical epics but historical costume epics in general, with early indicators of this trajectory being the underperformance of the much hyped {{wpl|The Fall of the Roman Empire (film)|''The Fall of the Roman Empire''}} and {{wpl|Cleopatra (1963 film)|''Cleopatra''.}} Shifting tastes had a part in the decline with moviegoers instead started to go for more experimental and artistically accomplished films that characterized the {{wpl|New Hollywood}} movement of the late 1960s and 1970s.

Although not the main cause of the decline, the stark under-performance of 1965's ''{{wpl|The Greatest Story Ever Told}}'' is often pointed to when the genre fell out of moviegoers' favor. The film failed to find favor with audiences and suffered from mixed reviews, with critics finding the film to be plodding, solemn, and filled with distracting, anachronistic celebrity cameos (like John Wayne as a Roman soldier), which broke the immersion. 

The last biblical epic blockbuster during the period was ''{{wpl|The Bible: In the Beginning...||,}}'' one year after ''The Greatest Story Ever Told''. Directed by the allegedly  [[atheist]] John Huston, the film was a moderate success at the box office, being the second highest grossing movie of 1966 in [[North America]],<ref>{{wpa|1966 in film}}</ref>{{efn|The profitability of a film is not solely based on its box office, and huge budget films often lose money despite having high box offices. The aforementioned ''Cleopatra'' for instance was the highest-grossing film of 1963 and still managed to lose money because of its incredibly high production and marketing costs.<ref>{{wpa|Cleopatra (1963 film)}}</ref>}}  but it received mostly negative reviews and couldn't save the genre from its decline.

===Late 60s and the 1970s (Niches and precursors)===
Thanks to the social upheaval of the late 1960s, things were about to get strange. While the edgy, counter-cultural New Hollywood stuff was the "it thing" of the time, the rise of the [[Jesus Movement]] provided a [[niche]] that some money-eyed frauds [[greed|wished to milk for its money's worth]]. Additionally, due to the biblical epics falling out of favor with major studios - as they were no longer ready to sink exorbitant amounts of money on a genre that was no longer consistently profitable - the smaller, independent movie companies took over in the proliferation of Christian movies.

What ensued was the beginning of the slowly but surely escalating deluge of low-budget trash, and although probably not the first one, a peculiar specimen indicating things to come was 1971’s ''{{wpl|If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?}}''. Directed by {{wpl|Ron Ormond}} and featuring producer/Southern Baptist preacher {{wpl|Estus Pirkle||,}} ''Footmen'' is considered the grand-daddy of ''Christian exploitation'' (aka ''Christsploitation'') cinema, introducing a handful of tropes and other tricks that can be seen in 2010s and 2020s Christsploitation flicks. ''Footmen'' served as the first part in the "Pirkle-Ormond" trilogy, being followed by the horror film ''Burning Hell'' (basically their vision what biblical [[hell]] is, though its hell on the viewer too) in 1974 and the much lighter ''The Believer's Heaven'' (which is their vision of [[heaven]]) in 1977, with the third film going largely ignored.<ref>{{cite book |last1= Weiner|first1= Robert G.|last2= Cline|first2= John|date=2010 |title= Cinema Inferno: Celluloid Explosions from the Cultural Margins|publisher= Bloomsbury Publishing|page= 295-300|isbn= 9780810876576}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last= Barefoot|first=Guy |date=2017 |title= Trash Cinema: The Lure of the Low|publisher= Columbia University Press|page= 125-127|isbn= 9780231542692}}</ref>

Indeed, it was through scares and horror that Christian-themed movies thrived in the 1970s, with two peculiar films that defined the genre emerging in 1973; seen best in ''{{wpl|The Exorcist}}'' and its worst with ''{{wpl|A Thief in the Night (film)|A Thief in the Night|.}}''

''The Exorcist'' was a seminal supernatural horror film directed by {{wpl|William Friedkin}} and based on the book by {{wpl|William Peter Blatty}}, who also wrote the screenplay. At its most basic, it's about the [[demonic possession]] of 12-year-old Regan MacNeil and her mother's desperate attempt to save her through an [[exorcism]] performed by two Catholic priests. The film is lauded for its masterful direction, powerful acting, and groundbreaking practical effects, which continue to be influential. It redefined horror films and elevated the genre itself to a respected art form, as well as paving the way for future award-winning horror movies. It also achieved massive financial success, becoming a highly profitable R-rated horror film and securing its place in cinematic history. It became a profound cultural touchstone, sparking public discourse on faith, science, and mental health. 

Meanwhile ''A Thief in the Night'' was an independently-produced Christian horror film by director-producer {{wpl|Donald W. Thompson}} and writer [[Russell Doughten]]. Unlike ''The Exorcist'', ''A Thief in the Night'' is influential for completely different and utterly sinister reasons. It depicts a [[skeptic]]al young woman named Patty who is left behind during the [[Rapture]] after she refuses to convert to Christianity, unlike her [[born again]] husband who disappears. She must then survive the ensuing Great Tribulation, navigating a world where the [[United Nations]] forms a [[One world government|global totalitarian government]] that forces the "[[Number of the Beast|mark of the beast]]" on those who reject Christ. 

''A Thief in the Night'' drastically changed the Christian film industry - being as if not more influential than ''If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?'' - and became one of the 1970s' most widely distributed films.<ref>{{cite book |last=Balmer |first=Randall |date=2014 |title= Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: A Journey into the Evangelical Subculture in America, 25th Anniversary Edition|publisher= Oxford University Press|page=65 |isbn= 9780199360482}}</ref><ref>Gribben, C. (2015). ''Evangelical Millennialism in the Trans-Atlantic World, 1500-2000.'' Palgrave Macmillan UK. Chapter 6. {{isbn|9780230304611}}</ref> It introduced many bad Chrisplotation tropes (refining what was previously introduced in ''Footmen'') and is considered a trailblazer in the Christian apocalypse film genre, being credited as the main influence for the ''[[Left Behind]]'' series, and inspiring other copycat films with a similar rapture/globalist anti-Christ horror gimmick.<ref name="TimBeal2023">Beal, Timothy, 'The Rise and Fall of Evangelical Protestant Apocalyptic Horror: From A Thief in the Night to Left Behind and Beyond', in Gastón Espinosa, Erik Redling, and Jason Stevens (eds), Protestants on Screen: Religion, Politics and Aesthetics in European and American Movies (New York, 2023; online edn, Oxford Academic, 21 Sept. 2023), https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190058906.003.0018, accessed 3 Sept. 2025.</ref> It was also controversial for its senseless scare tactics -- notably traumatizing many who were young during at time and leaving them with "[[Rapture#Rapture_anxiety|rapture anxiety]]".<ref>[https://edition.cnn.com/2022/09/27/us/rapture-anxiety-evangelical-exvangelical-christianity-cec/index.html CNN: "For some Christians, ‘rapture anxiety’ can take a lifetime to heal" by AJ Willingham (September 27, 2022)]</ref><ref>[https://www.vox.com/2017/12/12/16763230/raptureanxiety-calls-out-evangelicals-obsession-with-the-end-times-roy-moore-evangelical-jerusalem VOX: "#RaptureAnxiety calls out evangelicals’ toxic obsession with the end times" by Tara Isabella Burton (Dec 13, 2017)]</ref> The film got three more sequels in the late 1970s and early 1980s while Thompson/Doughten cranked out other, more dramatic religious flicks all the while.

Besides horror films - along with rock operas like {{wpl|Godspell (film)|''Godspell''}} (which Christians like) and ''[[Jesus Christ Superstar]]'' (which is divisive amongst Christians) - Christian films mainly survived by made-for-TV movies and mini-series, with {{wpl|Franco Zeffirelli||’s}} 1977 ''{{wpl|Jesus of Nazareth (TV series)|Jesus of Nazareth}}'' acclaimed as one of the best showings of the decade.<ref name="LydenRoutledge2009"/>{{rp|112}}

In 1974, the '''Christian Film Distributors Association''' (CFDA) was formed for the purpose of creating a more structured environment for the production and distribution of Christian films. In addition, the backlash towards 1970s malaise and dour, uninspiring movie protagonists (that got associated with liberalism) of the time started to mount. Things changed from the middle of the decade, with more "positive" movie characters – like Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa – showing some religiosity, and movies like ''Superman'' (1978) were observed to contain Christ allegories.

Perhaps the most ambitious undertaking of the Christian genre occurred in 1979 with ''{{wpl|Jesus (1979 film)|Jesus: The Movie}}''. Made by the [[Campus Crusade for Christ]] and adhering strictly to the Book of Luke, the film was picked up by Warner Bros. and ended up underperforming at the box office with negative reviews. Despite this, the Campus continued to use ''The Jesus Film'' as a proselytization tool and not only boasts it being the most translated film of all time but (debatedly) the most watched film period.

===1980s (Reaganism)===
Although the [[Ronald Reagan|Reagan revolution]] led to the [[Religious right]] taking over various aspects of American life in the 1980s, it appears they didn't quite take over the American film industry of the time. The early '80s were not kind to the independent Christian cinema, as not only did the ''Thief'' series prematurely end with its fourth installment - ''{{wpl|The Prodigal Planet}}'' - in 1983 (there were three additional films planned), but 1982 saw the release of the notorious ''[[Rock: It's Your Decision]]'', which has gone down as one of the best known and much ridiculed example of Christian propaganda films.

Things were not going much better in Hollywoodland, with there being only a few major studio-made motion pictures with any kind of clear-cut Christian theme. This is further expounded by the fact that the best known "Christian" movie of the decade is arguably the 1988 Martin Scorsese helmed ''[[The Last Temptation of Christ]]'', which is considered sacrilegious and was, and still is, widely detested by Christians globally -- though it has some defenders among Catholics. The only other Christian-themed films of any note from the decade were ''Chariots of Fire'', ''Agnes of God'' and ''The Mission''. Arguably the highest regarded Christian-themed movie of the decade was the 1987 Danish film ''{{wpl|Babette's Feast}}'', and although it got various accolades, it's not particularly brought up in regards to Christian cinema much anymore.

But true to Reagan's more [[Iran-Contra|insidious undertakings]], there was a hidden catch in regards to Christianity's furtive influence on American cinema at the time. While American TVs were spewing garish fluff of the [[Jim Bakker|Bakker]]s and like, the movies instead entertained with more subtle means of conveying Christian beliefs. Its presence was more [[psychological]] and expressed by the movie protagonists of the time, especially the [[machismo]] variety approved by Conservative moviegoers. The violent, [[Gun#Machine_Guns|squad automatic weapon]]-waving kill 'em all heroes like Stallone's John Rambo and whoever Charles Bronson was playing, were usually motivated by [[Two wrongs make a right|proverbial righteous anger towards perceived injustices]] and often unleashed [[Old Testament]]-grade destruction on enemies of America, be it aboard or home.<ref>{{cite book |last= Kehoe |first= Alice Beck |date=2012 |title=Militant Christianity: An Anthropological History |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |page=92 |isbn=9781137282156 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last= Kendrick |first= James|date=2009 |title= Hollywood Bloodshed: Violence in 1980s American Cinema |publisher=Southern Illinois University Press |page=84-85 |isbn= 9780809328888}}</ref>

Apocryphally, the most Christian movie series of the 1980s were the {{wpl|Friday the 13th (franchise)|''Friday the 13th'' films|.}} While on the surface these films seem like a Reaganite moral guardian’s worst nightmare, deep down these films speak the truth about the deranged bloodlust of the religious right of the time. Many viewers and critics interpret the ''Friday the 13th'' films as containing Christian allegories, particularly seeing the murderous villain protagonist {{wpl|Jason Voorhees}} as an agent of [[Divine retribution|divine punishment]] for the "[[sinful]]" behavior of sexually active teens. The series often portrays the "good" characters who are [[abstinent]] and respectful as surviving, while those engaging in sex, drugs, or other "debauchery" are punished. This creates a kind of demented scare campaign that promotes abstinence, a "virtue-cemented moral high ground," and functions as a conservative morality fable with religious undertones.<ref>Anderson, A. (2013). Rethinking the Slasher Film : Violated Bodies and Spectators in Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. UC San Diego. ProQuest ID: Anderson_ucsd_0033D_13402. Merritt ID: ark:/20775/bb6178909n. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8021w3p5</ref><ref>[https://youtu.be/iBA3Hiqms5M  "Ronald Reagan: American Slasher | Renegade Cut" (13.10.2019)]</ref>

The 1980s’ biggest contribution to Christian cinema is not the movies themselves, but rather the actors. Most of the future Christsploitation stars and other Christian celebrities either began their acting careers ({{wpl|David A.R. White}}, [[Kirk Cameron]]) or saw their careers peaking ([[Mel Gibson]], [[Chuck Norris]]) during this decade.

===1990s to early 2000s (End times hype and little else)===
Christianity's influence in the 1990s was not what it was a decade prior, and it reflected not only movies, but pop culture in general. While gothic and demonic imagery were considered cool at the time, there weren't really any remarkable movies that thematically tried to get any kind of “spiritual” message across. Not only that, but due to major [[terrorist]] attacks by the likes of [[Jihadist]]s ({{wpl|1993 World Trade Center bombing|1993 WTC attack}}), [[Christian Identity]] followers and [[militia movement|associates]] ([[Timothy McVeigh|Oklahoma bombing]] and the [[Eric Robert Rudolph|Centennial Olympic Park bombing]]) - as well as other loons ([[Branch Davidians]], [[Aum Shinrikyo]], [[Heaven's Gate]]) – religious fanatics of all stripes were actually villain fodder for pop culture of the time.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Eric S. Christianson|author2= Christopher Partridge |date= 2016|orig-date=2010|title=Holy Terror Understanding Religion and Violence in Popular Culture |url= https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/rbnsCwAAQBAJ |publisher= Taylor & Francis|chapter= 1., 4. and 5. |isbn=9781134938513 |access-date=January 18, 2026}}</ref><ref> Juergensmeyer, Mark, 'Religious Terrorism at the Turn of the Twenty-First Century', in Carola Dietze, and Claudia Verhoeven (eds), The Oxford Handbook of the History of Terrorism, Oxford Handbooks (2022; online edn, Oxford Academic, 13 Jan. 2014), https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199858569.013.032, accessed 18 Jan. 2026. </ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=John R. Hall|author2= Philip D. Schuyler|author3= Philip Daniel Schuyler|author4= Sylvaine Trinh  |date=2000 |title=Apocalypse Observed: Religious Movements, and Violence in North America, Europe, and Japan |url= https://www.google.com/books/edition/Apocalypse_Observed/Un6TZNLHQX4C|publisher= Routledge|chapter= esp. "Epilogue"|isbn=9780415192767 |access-date=January 14, 2026}}</ref>

Nevertheless, Christian Cinema saw limited yet impactful innovations in their bullshit during this decade. In particular, this was the time when various companies dedicated to pushing ''Christspolitation'' started to emerge. Firstly, the pre-established [[Trinity Broadcasting Network]] threw its hat in the film-making ring around the turn of the 1980s to 1990s, with the release of ''{{wpl|China Cry}}''. Off their heels, {{wpl|Cloud Ten Pictures}} began operations in 1994, initially producing [[schlockumentaries]].

Presumably due to a combination of [[premillennialist]] [[delusion]]s and [[Mass hysteria|panic]] over [[Y2K]], the second half of the 1990s saw a trend of Christian-themed [[end times]] films, with some of them not quite finishing in time and being released around the early noughties. Cloud Ten answered with the {{wpl|Apocalypse (film series)|''Apocalypse'' series}}, while TBN made ''{{wpl|The Omega Code}}'' and its sequel. Cloud Ten also produced the first film adaptations of ''[[Left Behind]]'', which starred [[Kirk Cameron]] as their lead. Even Hollywood wanted a piece of the action, as evidenced by 1999 [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] vehicle ''{{wpl|End of Days (film)|End of Days.}}''

Around 1999, {{wpl|ChristianCinema.com|ChristianCinema.com, Inc.}} was founded. Their first movie was 1999's ''The Moment After'', though arguably their best known films are the insane [[time travel]] movie ''{{wpl|Time Changer}}'' and the Thief in the Night/Left Behind inspired ''{{wpl|Six: The Mark Unleashed||.}}''

In the early 2000s, an interesting niche emerged in the faith-based sect with [[Mormonism#Mormon cinema|Mormon cinema]]. These films were made by and for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ranging from missionary dramas ({{wpl|God's Army (film)|''God's Army''}}, ''{{wpl|The Best Two Years}}''), historical pieces (''{{wpl|Saints and Soldiers}}'', ''{{wpl|The Work and the Glory}}''), and wacky comedies ({{wpl|The Singles Ward (film series)|''The Singles Ward''}}, ''{{wpl|The R.M.}}''). While the early films managed to achieve success in limited releases, the subgenre sputtered out by the middle of the decade and Mormon filmmakers would instead pivot to making their films "applicable" to the larger Christian market.

===2004 to 2013 (A rising tide, and Nollywood)===
The time frame between 2004 and 2013 served as a veritable prelude to the upcoming ''Chrisploitation'' wave of 2014. The major catalyst for the revived interest in spiritual cinema came in part thanks to [[Mel Gibson]]’s 2004 Hollywood-backed vanity project ''[[The Passion of the Christ]]'', which gathered a lot of buzz (both good and bad) and brought Christian movies back on the talking table.

The following year, the infamous {{wpl|Pure Flix Entertainment|| (now going by ''Pinnacle Peak Pictures'')}} was founded in [[Arizona]] by actors David A. R. White and Russell Wolfe - amongst other money men. Pure Flix would be a [[spam|major player]] of the 2010s Christsploitation wave, though the company's input was slow at first, only netting direct-to-DVD releases before hitting the big screen.

Also in 2005, {{wpl|The Chronicles of Narnia (film series)|''The Chronicles of Narnia'' film series}} (based on [[Christian apologetics|Christian apologist]] [[C.S. Lewis]]' fantasy books) began with its first installment, ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe''. While the Narnia films (nor the books) are not outright religious, it's generally understood that a lot of the writing and its themes come from a Christian mindset. Many Christian parents saw the ''Narnia'' movies as a "spiritually sound" family fantasy movie alternative to the popular ''[[Harry Potter]]'' series, as they viewed them negatively due to their portrayal of [[magic]] and [[witchcraft]]. ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' was the 4th highest-grossing film of the year, though its sequels exhibited diminishing returns.

The rise of Christian film festivals, DVD distribution, and church-based screenings also helped these films - notably the crappy ones - find an audience beyond traditional cinemas. In 2006, Ted Baehr of Movieguide (Christian-slanted movie and TV show review site) claimed that nearly 50 Christian-themed movies were made that year, and that they had grossed some $39 million at the box office. He also claimed that “major Hollywood studios have created marketing departments to target the growing demand for faith-based and family fare.“<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090910082110/http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/stories/030507dnentholyhollywood.26a80a.html Dallas Morning News: "Hollywood makes room for holiness" (March 8, 2007) (ARCHIVED)]</ref> The same year, motivated by the profits that ''The Passion of the Christ'' gathered, [[Rupert Murdoch]]’s media empire established the {{wpl|Fox Faith}} brand with an intent to release a “dozen religious films annually”. It did not go well, as reportedly only two films had "middling successes" while the rest of their theatrical films flopped, with the division closing in 2009.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/sep/20/religion.media TheGuardian: "Hollywood finds Christ as Foxfaith plans series of religious movies" by Suzanne Goldenberg (September 20, 2006)]</ref>

Also in 2006, [[Nigeria]]'s {{wpl|Nigerian film industry|film industry}} (a.k.a. "Nollywood") started to become a major player in Christsploitation. Many of their films were sold by the "Dove Studios" (run by the {{wpl|Redeemed Christian Church of God}} [[megachurch]]), which was a leading distributor of such trash at the time. Christian films were and remain a significant part of Nollywood, with around 20% of Nigerian films in the industry being thematically Christian.<ref>[https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/nigerian-church-transforms-into-movie-mogul-1.619481 CBC: "Nigerian church transforms into movie mogul" by CBC Arts (Posted: Mar 26, 2006 4:44 PM EST | Last Updated: March 27, 2006)]</ref>

One of two of the most notable Christian films from 2006 was the the biblical drama ''{{wpl|The Nativity Story}}'', which not only had a (unearned) world premiere at the [[Vatican]], but is also infamous due to {{wpl|Keisha Castle-Hughes}} (who plays [[Virgin Mary]]) becoming [[pregnant]] at the age of 16 shortly after finishing filming for movie, drawing controversy due to the "life imitating art" nature of the situation. She became pregnant with her boyfriend's child and, after facing some backlash, defended her decision to have the baby and eventually gave birth in 2007.<ref>[https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/keisha-says-controversy-spoiled-pregnancy/33F5Q5O4XMTSCJU47UYWN7ZC3E/ The New Zealand Herald: "Keisha says controversy spoiled pregnancy" (April 22, 2007)]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120325023937/http://celebritybabies.people.com/2007/06/08/introducing_fel/ People: "Introducing Felicity-Amore Hull — Keisha speaks about her labor, delivery, and new little girl" June 08, 2007 (ARCHIVED)]</ref> The other was the sports drama ''{{wpl|Facing the Giants||,}}'' which is considered the breakthrough film of Kendrick Brothers ([[Alex Kendrick|Alex]] and {{wpl|Stephen Kendrick|Stephen}}), being a successful independent film made with a low budget and amateur actors from Sherwood Baptist Church. 2006 also saw films that were critical of Christianity like the 2nd highest-grossing film of the year, ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'' (while nice that it does, it has its own set of bullshit) and the documentary ''[[Jesus Camp]]''. Also {{wpl|The Omen (2006 film)|the ''Omen'' remake}} was fittingly released on [[Number of the Beast|June 6, 2006]].

The next year was pretty quiet, but 2008 saw the release of ''[[Fireproof]]'', which was another Kendrick brothers surprise hit, grossing over $33 million against a small budget and becoming the highest-grossing independent film of that year. Although film critics trashed it, its success was driven by a strong word-of-mouth marketing campaign within the evangelical Christian community, which resulted in massive audience engagement. 2008 also saw the release of a notorious [[creationist]] propaganda film ''[[Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed]]''.

The time frame from 2009 to 2014 serves as the proverbial foreshock preceding the 2014 Christsplotation wave. In 2008, there were roughly 10 noteworthy Christian-themed movies released, with the number increasing to 25 in 2009. From this point on, it was quite normal to see 20-25 Christian-themed movies released a year -- with most of them being low-budget films left to die at the theaters. This is partly due to Pure Flix's input, as they really started to crank out their Christsplotation fare in 2009, with most of them starring the company co-founder David A.R. White.

Another peculiar film from this time frame was the 2012 film ''{{wpl|Last Ounce of Courage||,}}'' which is not known for the movie itself (it's a total POS [[War on Christmas]] hissy fit) but rather a robocall campaign promoting it. The marketing campaign violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), leading to a massive class-action lawsuit and a $32.4 million award to plaintiffs in 2017. Former [[Arkansas]] Governor [[Mike Huckabee]] was involved in promoting the 2012 film through this campaign, which involved millions of calls made under the guise of political surveys.<ref name="HR_EG_17">[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/telemarketing-movie-leads-32-million-punishment-class-action-1036961/ Hollywood Reporter: "Telemarketing of Movie Leads to $32 Million Punishment in Class Action" by Eriq Gardner (September 8, 2017)]</ref>

===2014 to 2020 (The Christploitation era)===
Then shit started to get pretty weird. As early as January, 2014 was dubbed the "Year of the Bible Film", with commenters having noticed that there was an unprecedented deluge of Christian-themed movies about to hit theaters that year.<ref>[https://www.thedailybeast.com/hollywood-declares-2014-the-year-of-the-bible/ The Daily Beast: "Hollywood Declares 2014 the Year of the Bible" by Andrew Romano (Jan. 9 2014 5:45AM EST)] (PAYWALL)</ref><ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jul/31/-sp-faith-films-hollywood-religion-christian-noah-heaven-is-real-bible The Guardian: "A movie miracle: how Hollywood found religion" by Tom Shone (July 31, 2014)]</ref> There was at least 25 Christian-themed movies released that year that were notable enough to get entries at [[Wikipedia]].

That year, Hollywood released Darren Aronofsky's ''[[Noah (film)|Noah]]'', which while financially successful and got good reviews, it was banned in many Islamic countries (plus [[China]]) and was criticized by Christians for its loose faithfulness to the Bible. Another sorta big thing was a new filmization of ''[[Left Behind]]'' starring {{wpl|Nic Cage}} and armed with a $16 million dollar budget, which was the largest budget an independent Christian production had to date. It gathered $27.4 million at the box office, which, while making its budget back, was not a full on financial success.{{efn|A movie needs to make roughly 2.5 to 3 times its production budget at the box office to break even, because theaters keep a significant portion of the gross revenue and there are also large marketing and distribution costs involved.}}

However, neither of these were really game-changers that revolutionized the Christian cinema. Instead, Pure Flix’s "throw it at the wall and see what sticks" strategy finally bore fruit when ''[[God's Not Dead]]'' (released March 2014) became that year's big sleeper hit. Accompanied by the likes of ''Son of God'', ''Heaven Is For Real'', and the documentary ''The Bible'', the success of ''God’s Not Dead'' opened the floodgates for a wave of low-budget faith-based cinema. While many of these movies were critically panned - with critics noting that many of these films were heavy-handed and preaching to the choir rather than offering nuanced storytelling - they proved popular with audiences and were highly profitable. The success led to increased interest and production of similar faith-based films. In 2015, [[The Guardian]] analyst Jacob Oller dubbed this fad as "Christsploitation".<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/nov/03/christsploitation-christian-hollywood-gives-thanks-for-the-new-wave-of-faith-movies The Guardian: "Christsploitation – Hollywood gives thanks for the new wave of faith movies" by Jacob Oller (November 3, 2015)]</ref>

That year also saw the release of Kirk Cameron's ''[[Saving Christmas]]'', which swiftly became one of the worst movies in human history. Following its overwhelmingly negative critical reception and extremely low audience ratings - which led to the film's failure and numerous Razzie awards for its poor quality - Cameron became upset by this on social media, accusing atheists of carrying out a smear campaign against his movie. He defended the film by suggesting that the low review scores were a coordinated effort by atheists on [[Reddit]] to discredit it, a claim that was widely debated and largely dismissed by many observers.

Between 2015 and 2020, some 130 Christian-themed movies (consisting of live-action, animated, and documentaries) were made, with nearly all of them being the low-budget theatrical trash variety. Most notable of the trash includes the likes of ''{{wpl|Do You Believe? (film)|Do You Believe?}}'', ''{{wpl|Old Fashioned (film)|Old Fashioned}}'', ''{{wpl|War Room (film)|War Room}}'', {{wpl|The Trump Prophecy}} (?!), and ''{{wpr|Unplanned||.}}'' Meanwhile, two sequels for ''God's Not Dead'' were released in 2016 and 2018 to diminishing returns. The third one especially took a hit, as it was less hostile in its intent against [[Other|the perceived enemies]] of Christianity.

Amidst the deluge of Christsploitation crap, there were some attempts by Hollywood and more artistic film talent to create something worth a damn. 2016 saw an attempted repeat of 2014 with the most successful one coming from Mel Gibson. He helmed ''{{wpl|Hacksaw Ridge}}'' - based on the story of [[Seventh-day Adventist]] {{wpl|Desmond Doss}} - which got good reviews, was successful at box office, and was nominated for several Oscars, though it attracted controversy regarding Gibson's anti-Semitic antics of the past, as well as debates over the film's historical accuracy, the sensationalization of Desmond Doss's story, and the film's depiction of violence and religious themes. Less successful was the ''{{wpl|2016 remake of Ben-Hur}}'', which was declared dead on arrival by industry professionals as there was zero interest in this unnecessary remake. Since it was filmed with a high budget and due to nobody seeing it, it led to significant financial losses and being labelled as the biggest box office bomb of that year's summer, earning a place amongst {{wpl|List of biggest box-office bombs|the biggest box office bombs in history|.}} Martin Scorsese helmed ''{{wpl|Silence (2016 film)|Silence}}'' was also released that year and while it was loved by critics, it didn't do much at the box office.

2018 fared better, mainly with documentaries. ''{{wpl|Amazing Grace (2018 film)|Amazing Grace}}'', recounting {{wpl|Aretha Franklin||'s}} recording of her titular 1972 gospel album, got rave reviews while {{wpl|Wim Wenders}} made the impressive ''{{wpl|Pope Francis: A Man of His Word}}'', focusing on the life and goals of [[Pope Francis]]. The last good Christian-themed movies from 2019 and 2020 included 
''{{wpl|A Hidden Life (2019 film)|A Hidden Life}}'', ''{{Wpl|The Two Popes}}'', and ''{{wpl|A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood||.}}''

=== 2021 to present (Angel Studios and gradual mainstreaming)===
The [[COVID-19 pandemic]] changed everything, including affecting how movies were consumed, and this too had an effect on Christian cinema. In particular, the low-budget Christsploitation movies took a hit, with the pandemic denting the momentum and the volume of releases it had from 2009 or 2014 onward. Indeed, the Christsploitation wave trailblazer ''God's Not Dead'' and the franchise it built had run its course, with ''God's Not Dead: We the People'' (2021) and ''God's Not Dead: In God We Trust'' (2024) being downgraded to limited runs and getting ignored both critically and commercially. Before that, creators Pure Flix had sold their streaming service and trademarks to Sony, which explains their name change. Although Christsploitation is still supposedly going strong, there’s been speculation about its decline.

It's also around this time where it appears that Christian film interests started to game review scores around the internet. If using a social cataloging application like IMDb and Letterboxd, the ratings for modern Christsploitation films can become hard to discern, as while there is ''review bombing'' involved, there is also ''reverse review bombing'' (i.e. flooding with excessively positive reviews), with many of these films having an abnormal number of perfect scores on the aforementioned social cataloging sites. As such, one should instead consult trusted critics to see through the [[flood the zone with shit|zone flooded with shit]].

Around 2021, the subtle creeping of Mormonism within the Christian film industry amplified with the formation of {{wpl|Angel Studios}} in [[Utah]]. It emerged from the bankruptcy of the {{wpl|VidAngel}} service with the help of equity crowdfunding and operates its own over-the-top video on-demand service aptly named "Angel" while giving high-profile films big screen releases.

While the niche Christsploitation films appear to be on the decline, higher-budgeted Christian films instead have started to slowly become more mainstream in conservative circles in tandem with the right wing rise of the late 2010s and early 2020s. This was most evident in 2023, when two unexpected hits of the year were ''[[Sound of Freedom]]'' and ''{{wpl|Jesus Revolution||.}}''

Despite being its own religion, [[Falun Gong]] also tried its hand at Christsploitation movies via a subsidiary of The Epoch Times. Their first film ''The Firing Squad'' was released on August 2, 2024; a prison drama loosely based on the {{wpl|Bali Nine}} Australian drug smugglers and starring Kevin Sorbo and Eric Roberts.<ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/epoch-studios-faith-movie-firing-squad-rcna158822 "Epoch Times, the conspiratorial pro-Trump outlet, enters a new market: Faith-based movies"] by Erik Ortiz and Daniel Arkin, NBC News, 2024 July 8</ref>

==Reoccurring elements and common themes==
{{hatnote|These mainly concern the bad ones - particularly the modern Christsploitation films - since those who make the good ones tend to have enough sense to ''avoid'' these sorts of indecorous missteps.}}
===The protagonists===
====Bourgeois lifestyles====
{{cquote|This is a movie about people ''so well off'', and so ''[[privilege]]d'', that they just -- [[Persecution complex|''have to'' feel victimized and persecuted about something, ''anything'']]. They wanna feel that ''they'' are victims too. Even though ''they're not'' -- and they live ''pretty fucking solid lives''.|||Brad "Cinema Snob" Jones talking about the movie ''"Last Ounce of Courage"'' (though this statement can be applied to most of ''Christsplotation'' films)<ref>[https://youtu.be/G-h0Jm-i184?t=1665 "Last Ounce of Courage - The Cinema Snob" by Stoned Gremlin Productions (28.11.2016)] (at 27:45 mark)</ref>}}

The people making these movies must have missed the "you cannot serve both God and money" part of the bible (Matthew 6:24), as if you pay attention to the main characters - particularly those made by Pure Flix - you can see that more often than not, they're doing quite well for themselves financially. ([[Prosperity Gospel|Gee, wonder why]].)

Even [[African-American]] Christians - in movies like 2015's {{wpl|War Room (film)|War Room}} - are shown being very affluent, which is somewhat detached from reality, as not only is median Black household wealth significantly lower (est. about 1/8th to 1/10th that of White households), African-Americans Christians usually rely on Churches and their communities for economic support, which in the grand scheme of things doesn’t eliminate broader economic inequality.<ref>[https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2014/12/12/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession/ Pew Research Center: "Wealth inequality has widened along racial, ethnic lines since end of Great Recession" by Rakesh Kochhar and Richard Fry (December 12, 2014)]</ref><ref>[https://www.pewresearch.org/2023/12/04/wealth-gaps-across-racial-and-ethnic-groups/ Pew Research Center: "Wealth Surged in the Pandemic, but Debt Endures for Poorer Black and Hispanic Families" by Rakesh Kochhar and Mohamad Moslimani, page 2 (December 4, 2023)]</ref>

====Our heroes, ladies and gentlemen====
Even though these Christian movies have very black-and-white worldviews and are occupied by obvious, mustache-twirling villains, it's not unusual to see the supposedly righteous protagonists behave absolutely heinously -- in what [[TV Tropes]] refers to as "Designated Hero", "Unintentionally Unsympathetic", and/or "Glurge" tropes. For instance, consider the protagonist from the first ''[[God's Not Dead]]'' movie - Josh Wheaton (Shane Harper) - who is more of an entitled brat than a religious person who is being repressed. As pointed out in TV Tropes' YMMW Page on the movie:<ref>[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/YMMV/GodsNotDead TV Tropes: God's Not Dead (YMMV)]</ref>
{{quotebox|The reason [Josh] is arguing against Radisson is because he mocked something he believed in, rather than how the movie portrays him as "fighting against an evil professor." Let's face it, if Radisson told all the students to write down "[[Allah]] is Dead" (ignoring that Allah is Arabic for God, as even Arab Christians use), there is a strong chance Josh would have written that down without a second thought. Later, he admits that he himself isn't sure that God does exist, but since now a good chunk of his final grade rides on this, <u>he sets out to get an entire class to believe that God does exist, which is the exact same thing Radisson wants, just in reverse.</u> He is also upset that Radisson dismisses his belief, <u>only for Josh's arguments to consist of him dismissing every other belief, claiming only Christians are right and are good people.</u> Then his girlfriend who he has dated for six years and who turned down two better colleges just to stay with him, seeing that doing this will most likely hurt his future, tries to get him to stop and suggests they break up when that doesn't work, <u>which he agrees to without a second thought, shocking and hurting her. He then seems to hook up with Ayisha at the concert not too long after, suggesting he completely forgot about his ex.</u> This is the opposite of what Radisson does when his girlfriend breaks up with him, where he is genuinely filled with guilt and sadness and soon tries to make amends. Then there are his "debates" where he <u>makes snide comments just to tick off Radisson, then gets overly emotional and just starts angrily badmouthing Radisson till he breaks, things Radisson [the designated villain] himself was doing during the debates as well.</u> It seems like the only reason we are to see Josh as the hero is just because he is fighting for Christianity, which he is only fighting for because he believes in it, rather than a moral reason.}}

===The antagonists===
====Romans====
Christian experience with [[Roman Empire|Roman dictatorship]] is kind of part of their history, considering Jesus lived in the 1st century during the reigns on Augustus and Tiberius -- and by extension, the entire religion emerged and spread within the Roman Empire. So obviously, Romans are usually the villains in the more historical movies, with them being particularly common during the height of the cinematic biblical epics in the 1950s and early 1960s.

====Commies====
Due to the decline of biblical epic, Romans went out of style as the Christians' go-to villains. Therefore, Christian cinema searched and found a new enemy, the one that was the #1 threat to the God-fearing American's way of life: [[Communism]]. 

A notable early one to make a big plot out of it was 1971's ''If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?'', in which the film segues between Baptist Estus Pirkle preaching sessions and an imagined communist regime that has taken over America and ruthlessly oppresses Christians. In addition to communist tyrants, these films also tend to point fingers towards [[progressives]] and [[social liberal]]s for their loose way of life infecting and disarming America's ability to be ready for this atheist commie dictatorship. Maybe the best known recent one using this theme is ''2025 - The World Enslaved by a Virus'' in which a global communist system with a [[one world government]] emerges after the 2020 Coronavirus outbreak, leading to the suppression of Christianity and a restriction of personal contacts.

And if it's not communism...

====Globalists====
... then it's [[globalism]]. The anti-globalist strain arguably began with 1973 rapture-horror film ''A Thief in the Night'', in which the [[United Nations]] declares a task force "UNITE" to go over all the people in the world, putting the mark of the devil in the willing followers and those who have second doubts (and want to find Christ instead) getting killed. This theme was [[Plagiarism|plagiarized]] in ''[[Left Behind]]'', with the early noughts movie series featuring the [[Antichrist]], Nicolae Carpathia (played by Gordon Currie with a campy faux-Russian accent), who like in the original novels, is the Secretary-General of the United Nations (before he takes it over and converts it to some Global Supreme Potentate). Meanwhile, the villain of 1999's ''The Omega Code'' is ALSO the Antichrist, but this time he is the head of the [[European Union]] instead (played by {{wpl|Michael York|Basil Exposition}} from ''Austin Powers''.)

====Atheists====
But of course, disciples of the [[Age of Enlightenment]] get the burn of Christians' dismay. [[Atheists]] usually serve as mustache-twirling intellectual challenges to the Christian protagonists and their beliefs, and as these films are not particularly nuanced, Christianity's triumph over atheism is about always a foregone conclusion. After being proven wrong, the atheist either converts, dies, or [[Deathbed conversion|converts and then dies]].

As these films are mainly made 
[[Confirmation bias|to confirm the audience's worst impulses]]
 as escapism, the filmmakers have free rein to distort and/or come up with totally bullshit excuses why the atheists are the way they are, in the most church-friendly way possible.

Factually, people leave Christianity for numerous potential reasons. These include intellectual doubts, disappointment with the church's negative behaviors like hypocrisy or abuse, personal struggles like family conflicts or spiritual disillusionment, and disagreement with the faith's social stances on issues like LGBTQ rights or racism. Sometimes, it's a result of stressors or a lack of commitment, but for many, it stems from deeply held values conflicting with Christian doctrines or experiences.<ref>{{cite book |last= McSkimming|first=Josie |date=2016 |title=Leaving Christian Fundamentalism and the Reconstruction of Identity |publisher= Taylor & Francis |chapter= 4. "Journeys of change and renewal II" |isbn= 9781317106579}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1= Argyle |first1= Michael|last2= Beit-Hallahmi|first2=Benjamin |date=2013 |orig-year= 1975|title=The Social Psychology of Religion (Psychology Revivals)|publisher= Taylor & Francis |isbn= 9781135041496}}</ref><ref>[https://iep.utm.edu/atheism/ IEP: "Atheism" by Matt McCormick, California State University, Sacramento, U. S. A.]</ref>

Instead, you'll be seeing the movie atheists professing completely different motives. Common one being the "God failed me" thing, in which people become atheists due to something bad having happened to them - like their wife dying. This is most clearly present in early ''God's Not Dead'' movies with Kevin Sorbo's atheist professor and Ray Wise's insidious prosecutor.

The "God failed me" trope is a [[informal fallacy]] as while "God failure" is one of the reasons why somebody might leave Christianity/deconvert, it's portrayed as being way more common than it actually is. Rarely will the other reasons - like church misconducts, one's intellectual growth, or finding a better way to be an ethical person - be addressed, as God forbid if the audience gets upset when the church is made the bad guy or the atheists' reasoning actually being sound. 

This reason is also stupid in that ''even Christians do not generally believe'' that atheists don't follow God because God failed them, with the common view being that atheism is a result of a fundamental lack of faith, rather than a response to God's failure or neglect.

====ACLU (+ "Liberal government")====
Of course, the bedeviled [[ACLU]] that prevents Christians from using religion to discriminate against others is portrayed as a force of evil in these movies. Since ACLU has been designed to secure free speech for all - including non-Christians - this naturally is a grievous offense to Christians' freedom of religion. ACLU do their villain duties in movies like ''God's Not Dead 2'' and ''Last Ounce of Courage''. Sometimes, these "[[virtue signalling]] [[liberals]]" (read: [[Democrats]]) from either state-level positions (mayors and governors) get involved, and sometimes these culture wars reach all the way to the [[US Congress]].

====Other religions====
As their religion operates on the principle that ''their'' religion is the right one and/or the only way to reconcile with God, this naturally puts Christianity at odds with the religions that are "not Christianity."

[[Judaism]] gets a fair bit of evil eye in these movies, particularly due to the Caiaphas and co.'s {{wpl|Sanhedrin trial of Jesus|role in dooming}} Jesus to crucifixion by the Romans, as well as not recognizing Jesus as the messiah. As such, there is an air of [[antisemitism]] seeping through in a good number of these movies - especially those [[Passion play|that recount Jesus' crucifixion]] - with there being sometimes little finger pointing and sometimes outright damnation of the entire Jewish religion.

[[Islam]] gets [[Islamophobia|shit flung at it]] too, especially after [[9/11]], because... [[War on Terror|you know]]. Notable instances include the Muslim family from ''God's Not Dead'' (appearing in the 1st and 4th movie), where the family patriarch (played by Marco Khan) is portrayed as a violent, backwards-ass monster who throws her daughter out after she gets interested in Christianity. Another notable one is the villain in ''Assassin 33 A.D.'', who is a vengeful Muslim who funds some student scientists' time machine project to go back in time to kill Jesus to stop Christianity from ever existing (no really, that's the plot of that movie).

===Overarching elements===
====Parroting right-wing culture war talking points (+ the unsubtle cameos)====
It's not unusual to see Christsploitation movies echo conservative [[culture war]] talking points, which the right-wing outlets are spewing at any given time. Some of these movies are outright created as response to some recent woe starting, such as ''Christmas with Capital C'' (2010) and ''Last Ounce of Courage'' (2012), created as a response to the "[[War on Christmas]]" donkey-doo.{{efn|Just before 2010, [[American Family Association]] raised noise over the Home Depot using "holiday" and "Hanukkah" on their website in October 2008<ref>[https://www.laprogressive.com/progressive-issues/the-rights-bogus-war-on-christmas LA Progressive: "The Right's Bogus War on Christmas"] by Rev. Irene Monroe (Dec 19, 2009)</ref> and then on November 2009, AFA launched a boycott of Gap, Inc. due to them "censoring the word Christmas."<ref>[http://content.usatoday.com/communities/Religion/post/2009/11/the-gap-ads--happy-do-whatever-you-wannukah-reignites-war-on-christmas-debate/1?loc=interstitialskip#.UOGv-ncer5M USA Today: "The Gap's 'Happy Whatever-you-Wannukah' Ad Reignites 'War on Christmas' Debate" by Leslie Miller (Nov 23, 2009)]</ref>}} 

Often repeated narratives range from Christianity being “under attack" by the [[secular]]izing culture (''God’s Not Dead''), Critique of Secularism and Academia (distrust of “liberal elites” in education/media), [[Pro-Life]] messaging (''Unplanned''), championing traditional gender roles, anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment, or erasure and patriotic nationalism (reinforces the “[[Christian nation]]” narrative common in conservative rhetoric). This, of course, stems from the fact that the target Christian audience usually includes the politically conservative, with these movies being a way to confirm their cultural values and beliefs. 

To make sure that their [[Useful idiots|stupid audience]] understands that these movies are made by right-wing interests, they usually shoehorn right-wing pundits and speakers into these movies, usually in cameo roles as themselves. These include the likes of {{wpl|Willie Robertson}} of ''Duck Dynasty'' (appearing in first ''God's Not Dead''), [[Sean Hannity]] (appearing in ''Let There Be Light'', which Hannity also co-produced), [[Michele Bachmann]] and [[William G. Boykin]] (appearing in ''Trump Prophecy'', being two of various interviewees) and My Pillow CEO [[Mike Lindell]] (appearing in ''Unplanned'', which he co-produced).

====Calm the fuck down everybody====
Related to the "culture war talking points", a thing that happens in a lot of these films is everything being relatively fine until one of these culture war things/other sort of first-world inconvenience is brought up. Once it does, everybody goes fucking berserk like a kindergartner trying to secure playtime with some popular toy. Adult responsibilities and safeguarding the moderated environment appear to be no concern to any of the grown-ass people in these films.

Many of these movies have the film's protagonist(s) running into inconvenience by happenstance, which makes them realize that Christianity - and thus their personal freedom - is being threatened. One notable case is ''Christmas with Capital C'', where the main character goes positively apeshit for others not making a hullabaloo about "Happy Holidays". The same occurs in another "war on Christmas" movie, ''Last Ounce of Courage''.

Sometimes these movies try to make the non-Christians be the hysterical ones, such as in ''God's Not Dead 2'', in which a teacher with Christian beliefs gets sued for talking about Jesus in class. If you think there's no legal ground for that, well...

====How do I anything?====
One telling thing that happens in these movies is characters (both protagonists and antagonists) being unable to do things normally or not understanding general facts. And this is not just "dad can't figure out how to use a computer" or "there's this newfangled teen trend" trope you may see in other junk-food media, but there are literally times when the viewer might start to worry that the characters in these movies spontaneously forget how to breathe. If every instance were added here, this would read longer than {{wpl|Lord of the Rings||,}} but for clarity's sake, here are a few examples.

Besides the implausible lawsuit that occurs in ''God's Not Dead 2'' (because of its exaggerated church-state conflict, misrepresentation of the legal process, and reliance on unlikely motivations for the students' parents, high school board, and attorneys involved), the first ''God's Not Dead'' also has a similar issue. Its plot hinges on the atheist professor not using his authority to stop the escalating argument over God's existence, when he is entitled to do so as the teacher of his own damned philosophy class. The protagonists' triumph over him is not due to their argument being good, but the atheist professor just making inexplicably bad decisions on his own.

Notably, the failed 1982 satanic panic propaganda ''[[Rock: It's Your Decision]]'' gets various facts wrong; incorrectly associating rock music with satanism and the occult, failing to understand song lyrics or themes, and misrepresenting popular artists by linking them to evil practices. As the film treats these as fact (and as a religiously righteous cause to go after), it turns the main character into an unlikable, overtly judgmental dingus.

The 1991 TV movie ''A Little Piece of Heaven'' features [[Kirk Cameron]] "rescuing" orphans from bad situations by taking them and hiding them on a remote farm, with his motive being to give them a better life. Legally, this is ''fucking kidnapping'', plain and simple. Not only that, him pretending to be some kind of angel comes off as really deranged; under different circumstances, he'd be an effective serial killer villain. But the film frames it in a sympathetic and even righteous light.

Then there is the Pro-Life propaganda film ''[[The Life Zone]]'', which portrays a scenario where women who want abortions are being kidnapped and forced to carry to term (with the kidnapper being the one depicted as righteous). In most jurisdictions where abortion is legal, that would be illegal, unconstitutional, and/or criminal. It misrepresents how law, medical ethics, and individual rights work. Such extreme measures are not supported by legal frameworks in countries where abortion is permitted. Also, the film’s twist reveals that the main character(s) died during the abortion procedure and are in Hell. (Or Purgatory, who the fuck knows...) In real life, the overwhelming majority of abortions '''do not''' result in the death of the woman. Mortality in abortion is very rare, especially in well-regulated medical environments, with the safety of abortions being compromised when it's restricted, criminalized, or forced into unsafe conditions. Presenting death during abortion as common or default is factually incorrect -- with this being a classic portrayal in media about sensationalizing or inaccurately presenting abortion as dangerous, for political or ideological reasons.<ref>Induced termination of pregnancy before and after Roe v Wade. Trends in the mortality and morbidity of women. Council on Scientific Affairs, American Medical Association. JAMA. 1992 Dec 9;268(22):3231-9. PMID: 1433765.</ref><ref>Raymond EG, Grimes DA. The comparative safety of legal induced abortion and childbirth in the United States. Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Feb;119(2 Pt 1):215-9. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0b013e31823fe923. PMID: 22270271.</ref><ref>Hollander, Dore (2012), FYI. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 44: 76-77. https://doi.org/10.1363/4407612</ref>

====Racism====
It might not come as a surprise that about all of these films are made from a white person's worldview, whether or not the people making them recognize it. Either everybody is white or the non-whites are background fodder. Even when there are [[Tokenism|black characters in visible roles]], they are often negativisticly [[stereotype]]d as either the [[Friend argument|"black friend"]], dimwitted housewives, criminals ([[Drug|drug dealers]], [[Scam|white-collar criminals]], [[Domestic violence|wife-beaters]]), or as full-on {{wpl|Magical Negro|magic (n-word)s|.}}

====Sexism====
Sexism in Christian movies is common, being reflection of theological, cultural, and societal influences of Christianity. This primarily stems from theology and culture, as well as audience expectations; with filmmakers holding conservative interpretations of scripture (which informs how they portray gender), as well as the audience being primarily evangelical or traditionalists who prefer unchallenged gender roles.

One key to this is the "Submission Theology", as these films are influenced by [[Complementarianism|complementarian]] theology (a belief that men and women have "different but complementary roles") that emphasizes female submission to male authority as a spiritual virtue. This is portrayed as being part of "God’s design" and discouraging women from leadership or independence. As such, traditional gender roles are reinforced, with males typically shown as the spiritual leaders or decision-makers, while the women are often portrayed in "traditional" roles (mothers, wives, homemakers) and being defined only in relation to men (as wives, daughters, temptresses, or supporters). There is also a distinct lack of female agency in any of these films, with the woman usually needing to be "saved" — spiritually or emotionally — by male characters, with women’s personal struggles being minimized or resolved solely through submission or passivity.

Meanwhile, women who are career-driven, outspoken, or non-traditional are sometimes portrayed negatively — as "cold", "lost", or in need of "correction." Modesty and purity are often heavily emphasized for women, sometimes with a tone of shame or fear.

One of the two prime examples of sexism in Christsploitation is ''Fireproof'', in which the wife of the relationship is portrayed as something that needs to be "won back" through unilateral male effort, with the wife's concerns being minimized. The other is 2015's ''War Room'', in which the wife is [[Domestic violence|abused]] and made to tolerate her husband's poor behavior, with her having no options but personal submission and [[Prayer|praying]] that God fixes her husband.

Sometimes sexism is a contextual trap, as sometimes not only are female characters portrayed as one-dimensional, so are the male characters too -- stemming from the fact that people writing these movies are not terribly good at their jobs.

====Homophobia====
Christian films treat the [[LGBTQ]] community in two ways: they don't exist or they are topics of some fearmongering documentaries. Even when institutions that allow LGBTQ people to live their damn lives are mentioned (such as ACLU), the actual LGBTQ people are usually never visible in the narrative-driven movies. Instead they are generally targets in the shlockumentaries like [[Ray Comfort]]'s ''Audiacity'' (2015) or Mark Archer's ''[[The Mind Polluters]]'' (2021), which are designed to stoke the fires of [[moral panic]] by enabling the hateful audience's worst delusions by providing them "the evidence" that [[homosexual agenda]] is real and it's there to ruin you, your friends, and your entire country. Oh nose!

====Fire fighters====
Inexplicably, there are a few Christsplotation movies in which its lead character is a firefighter. With the exception to possibly [[closet|being some kind of a kink]], their inclusion can be interpreted to symbolize the ideas of service, protection, self-sacrifice, and sometimes even a metaphor for the difficult but noble calling of a Christian, making them a thematically relevant character.

====Basketball====
One funky trope that appears more than expected is the good guy characters playing basketball, be it a short scene (''Last Ounce of Courage'') or an entire movie built around it (''Hoovey'', ''Overcomer'').

There is actually a method to madness here, as basketball's roots have Christian origins, in that it was invented in 1891 by {{wpl|James Naismith}}, a [[YMCA]] instructor. The narrative structure of sports, particularly basketball, naturally lends itself to the usual Christian themes of struggle, sacrifice, ultimate triumph, and such. As a result, these conventions can be translated to movie tropes, showing characters overcoming challenges not just through their athletic skill but also through their faith and belief.

==The usual suspects==
{{see also|Fun:Hollywood conservatives|Hollywood conservatives}} 
If you pay attention to these movies enough, some common names tend to pop up. Besides select individuals (including FOUR creative teams made of two brothers) -- Christsploitation films commonly feature has-been actors who, after falling off, found Christsploitation as their meal ticket, as well as actors who just can't say no if they get paid (Eric Roberts) and occasionally croynism with noted Christian public speakers and pundits.

===Mel Gibson===
{{main|Mel Gibson}}

===Kirk Cameron===
{{main|Kirk Cameron}}

===Kevin Sorbo===
{{main|Kevin Sorbo}}

===David A.R. White===
[[File:David A.R. White Photo Op GalaxyCon Richmond 2019.jpg|thumb|100px|right|God may be great, but his movies sure aren't.]]
One name you will be seeing a lot in the realm of the Christian film industry is '''{{wpl|David A. R. White|David Andrew Roy "A.R." White|.}}''' Born May 12, 1970 in Dodge City, [[Kansas]], White is the son of a Mennonite pastor. He studied at {{wpr|Moody Bible Institute}} before deciding to move to [[California]] at the age of 19. 

There, he soon landed a minor role on the TV series {{wpl|Evening Shade||,}} where he acted in 8 episodes of the show. He also had various small roles in moderately big TV shows of the time. His first movie role was in 1990's ''Geronimo'' and he had an uncredited role as an army pilot in the 1995 movie ''{{wpl|Outbreak (1995 film)|Outbreak}}'' (which saw resurgence in early 2020s due to [[COVID-19 pandemic]], and is also detested by Christian [[anti-vaxxer]]s.)

His first Christian movie (that's worth a [[Wikipedia]] entry at least) was the Jon Gunn-directed faith thriller ''{{wpl|Mercy Streets||.}}'' Subsequently, he landed a major role in the Chuck Norris faith-influenced horror flick {{wpl|Bells of Innocence||.}} As mentioned above, he co-founded Pure Flix Entertainment in 2005 and his films there can be read as autobiographical.<ref>[https://vimeo.com/249699156 Pure Flix and Chill: The David A.R. White Story]</ref>

White has over 38 acting credits in movies (plus 17 TV roles), with him also taking roles of director, producer, and/or writer -- the only movie in which he does all four is 2010's ''Holyman Undercover''. White is also somewhat confrontational, usually wanting to speak with whoever has criticized him and wishing Christian goodwill in a kind of passive-aggressive manner.

===Dean Cain===
[[File:Dean Cain by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|100px|right|]]
'''{{wpl|Dean Cain}}''' (born Dean George Tanaka) - like fellow Christsplotion star [[Kevin Sorbo]] - was a fairly respected figure in the 1990s and early 2000s television landscape, being best known as Superman in ''{{wpl|Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman}}'' as well as being the host of the {{wpl|Ripley's Believe It or Not! (2000 TV series)|2000-2003 incarnation of ''Ripley's Believe It or Not''.}}

After he started Jesusing, his notable Christsplotation roles include ''Christmas Rush'' (2002), ''Heaven’s Door'' (2012), ''God’s Not Dead'' (2014), ''Break Every Chain'' (2021), ''No Vacancy'' (2022), and ''Miracle at Manchester'' (2022). Also like Sorbo, he is real dink on [[Twitter]], as well as a Trump-humper. Having played Superman once, he thinks everybody cares about what his opinion about the character going "woke" is.

In August 2025, Cain announced on [[Fox News]] that he would be sworn in as an official with the [[U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement|ICE]] to assist in the mass deportation of migrants from the United States, as he deems that the immigration system was "broken."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/aug/07/former-superman-actor-dean-cain-reveals-hes-becoming-an-ice-agent-to-support-trumps-mass-deportation-agenda The Guardian: "Former Superman actor Dean Cain reveals he’s becoming an Ice agent to support Trump’s mass deportation agenda" by Sian Cain (August 7, 2025)]</ref>

===John Schneider===
[[File:John Schneider by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|100px|right|]]
'''{{wpl|John Schneider (screen actor)|John Schneider}}''' is best known for his roles as Beauregard "Bo" Duke in ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' (1979) and Jonathan Kent in ''Smallville'' (2001). He also had a sorta successful country singer career in the 1980s.

Schneider became a born-again Christian in 1998 while living with {{wpl|Johnny Cash}} and June Carter Cash. This significant spiritual transformation happened later in life, though he had a childhood belief in God thanks to his grandmother, and a "pivotal moment of understanding Christ" occurred when he was 29. Around the time when he became a born-again, he founded FaithWorks Productions, which specializes in Christian and faith-based movies for "family audiences".

John Schneider has starred in several Christian films - quite a few being Pure Flix productions - including ''Hidden Secrets'' (2006), ''Season of Miracles'' (2013), ''WWJD What Would Jesus Do?: The Journey Continues'' (2015) and ''Finding Faith'' (2024).

Schneider's best-known recent controversy was in December 2023, when he wrote a controversial Twitter post - that was later deleted - accusing then-President [[Joe Biden]] of treason and suggesting Biden be publicly hanged ([[Hypocrite|how]] {{wpl|Patience#Christianity|patient}}). He later stated that he had not threatened the president, as many other public figures have allegedly done in the past.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/21/dukes-hazzard-actor-john-schneider-biden-execution The Guardian: "Dukes of Hazzard actor John Schneider called for public hanging of Joe Biden" by Ramon Antonio Vargas (December 22, 2023)]</ref> This post led to the cancellation of his Fox press appearances after his exit from the show ''The Masked Singer''. Schneider has stated that he voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 election.

===Stephen Baldwin===
[[File:Stephen Baldwin by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|100px|right|]]
'''{{wpl|Stephen Baldwin}}''' is one of the two right-wing asshole Baldwins, along with [[Adam Baldwin|Adam]]. Though unlike Adam, Stephen has leaned on Jesusing in regards to film industry relevance. By his account, he became a [[born again]] Christian due to [[9/11]] -- though the truth of this Chrisplotation path might actually be that his career prospects in Hollywood had already derailed prior to the event. Indeed, despite having some promise early on, his Hollywood career was already going bad with disasters like ''Bio-Dome'' and ''Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas''.

His first Christian film was likely the [[skateboarding]] documentary ''Livin' It'' in 2004, which he produced and featured Christian rock and interviews with skaters about their faith. The same year, he starred in the Downes brothers' Left Behind clone ''Six: The Mark Unleashed'', co-starring with David A.R. White, Eric Roberts, and director Kevin Downes. His best known Christsploitation film role appears to be {{wpl|Graham Staines}} in the 2019 "true story" film ''{{wpl|The Least of These: The Graham Staines Story||.}}''

Since his conversion, he's mainly supported Republican politicians, with him first supporting [[Sam Brownback]] as president in 2007, before Brownback dropped out in October 2007, with Baldwin then choosing [[Mike Huckabee]]. Like his brother Adam, he is a supporter of [[Donald Trump]], being one of the first "celebrities" to do so in 2016. He then backed Trump in 2020 and 2024.

===Eric Roberts===
This one's a bit of a contextual trap, as {{wpl|Eric Roberts|'''Eric Roberts'''|,}} besides being the brother of {{wpl|Julia Roberts||,}} is also known as the actor who just can't say no. By 2022, Eric Roberts had acted in over 700 movie and TV roles, having been in everything from critically acclaimed films like ''The Dark Knight'', to lot of shit, including ''in ad rem'' Christsploitation.<ref>[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/eric-roberts-interview-hollywood-film-tv-1235254555/ Eric Roberts on His 700 (and Counting) Screen Credits: “I’m One of The Luckiest Guys in Hollywood” by Alex Ritman (The Hollywood Reporter) November 3, 2022]</ref>{{efn|Even though he has crazy amounts of acting roles, he doesn't have most of any person in the world. That honor belongs to Indian actor Brahmanandam, who had over  1,170 acting credits in 2022.}} 

Unlike most other Christsploitation mainstays, Eric doesn't outright identify himself as Christian. While he was born to a Catholic family, he doesn't broadcast his Christianity across the planet. He's probably too busy acting to actually attend church.

It still doesn't absolve him of taking part in complete propaganda. He was actually pretty integral in the early noughties Christploitation environment, having major roles in flicks like ''Mercy Streets'' (2000), ''Christmas Rush'' (2002), and ''Six: The Mark Unleashed'' (2004). His best-known Christian-themed movie role is a mentor character named "Hickey" in ''Worth: The Testimony of Johnny St. James'' (2012); while his more recent input includes the likes of ''In the Blink of an Eye'' (2009) and ''The Firing Squad'' (2024).

===Ray Wise===
You might know '''{{wpl|Ray Wise}}''' as {{wpl|Leland Palmer|the possessed abusive father}} from ''{{wpl|Twin Peaks}}'' or that [https://robocop.fandom.com/wiki/Leon_Nash one psycho criminal] from {{wpl|RoboCop|original ''RoboCop''|,}}  but his career spans many genres and projects, having appeared in a number of films from production companies like Pure Flix. His biggest Christsploitation contributions are the villainous [[Misotheism|God-hating]] prosecutor Peter Kane from the 2nd and 5th ''God's Not Dead'' movies, as well as ''Revelation Road: The Beginning of the End''.

Wise describes himself as Christian, having grown up attending a Romanian Baptist church and later a Methodist church with his family. Though unlike many other Christsplotation stars, Wise seems to comprehend and put the virtues of religion to use. While he makes bad decisions in taking part in these terrible propaganda films, he's not completely terrible, as he has also agreed to sell pro-[[Trans rights]] merch on his social media accounts.

===Bruce Marchiano===
'''{{wpl|Bruce Marchiano}}''' is an Italian-Syrian American actor and Christian ministry leader who really, really, '''''really''''' likes playing Jesus. Having first played our Lord and Savior(TM) in the 1993 {{wpl|Visual Bible|| series,}} he's reprised his role ''at least'' ten times. His most recent Christsploitation movie of note is the 2019 Kendrick Brothers project {{wpl|Overcomer (film)|Overcomer,}} in which he ''doesn't'' play Jesus.

===Corbin Bernsen===
You might know '''{{wpl|Corbin Bernsen}}''' from ''L.A. Law'' and ''Psych'', but Bernsen is also involved in many Christian films, notably directing and starring in the 2010 faith-based drama ''Rust'' and writing/directing ''Beyond the Heavens'' (2013). He also produced the 2014 film ''Christian Mingle'' and starred in the 2021 film ''Past Shadows''. In 2023, he released the documentary series ''Journey of Faith'' on Pure Flix.

===Ashley Bratcher===
One of the recurring female actors, '''{{wpl|Ashley Bratcher}}''' is primarily known for portraying [[Abby Johnson]] in the 2019 anti-abortion drama ''[[Unplanned]]'', which she considered "worth it", even at risk of supposedly "getting blacklisted by Hollywood." She's also acted in ''Princess Cut'', ''War Room'', and ''A Walk with Grace''. Much like her best-known role, she is an anti-abortion activist nutjob too.

[[Stopped clock|Oh]], she also had a public falling out with Angel Studios over the logistics of one of her proposed film projects but that's another article.<ref>[https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/sound-of-freedom-angel-studios-audience-business-practices-1234928374/ Rolling Stone: They Made ‘Sound of Freedom’ a Hit — But Were They Deceiving Their Audience? by Miles Klee (Dec. 14, 2023) (PAYWALLED)]</ref>

===Candace Cameron Bure===
'''{{wpl|Candace Cameron Bure}}''' is the younger sister of Kirk Cameron, as well as the chief content officer of {{wpl|Great American Media}} from 2022 onward. Like her elder brother, she has a long history of starring in holiday films with themes of faith and family. She states that she wants to keep "God at the center" of her content and make movies that can "change someone's life". She is mainly home to Great American Prue Flix with crappy film credits like ''Unsung Hero'', ''A Christmas... Present'', ''Finding Normal'', and ''My Christmas Hero''.

===Cecil B. DeMille===
While it might seem absurd to place a highly regarded filmmaker amongst this list consisting mostly of shlockmeisters, the fact remains that '''{{wpl|Cecil B. DeMille}}''' was a major contributor to the Christian film industry, both for good and bad. Although ''not all'' of his films were Christian-themed, he is considered a pioneer in the biblical epic genre. He is best known for the two versions of  ''The Ten Commandments'' (1923 and 1956), ''The King of Kings'' (1927), ''The Sign of the Cross'' (1932), and ''Samson and Delilah'' (1949). However, he also directed the 1928 film ''Godless Girl'', which is about an atheist girl and a theist boy, that employs many propagandist techniques and bad tropes that modern Christsploitation films would use.

===Ron Ormond & Estus Pirkle===
'''{{wpl|Ron Ormond}}''' and '''{{wpl|Estus Pirkle|Estus Pirkle}}''' were the 1970s power duo, responsible for the notorious Ormond-Pirkle trilogy. Ormond was a B-movie director known mainly for schlock like ''Mesa of Lost Women'', but after surviving a plane crash, Ormond converted to Christianity. Estus W. Pirkle ("W." standing for "[[Euphemism|Will you come?]]") meanwhile is a [[Gish gallop|motor-mouth]] [[Southern Baptist]] pastor from [[Mississippi]]. 'nuff said.

The two apparently met during one of Pirkle's sermons, with Ormond having just become a born-again Christian. Their first movie would be ''If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?'', which is based on Pirkle's 1968 sermon. They would subsequently make ''The Burning Hell'' in 1974 and ''The Believer's Heaven'' in 1977, completing their unofficially official trilogy. Afterwards, they split up, presumably due to creative differences, with ''The Believer's Heaven'' being notably tamer than the first two. While Pirkle would be done with films, Ormond would do a few more Christsploitation flicks; including ''The Grim Reaper'' (1976, which was actually released prior to ''Believer's Heaven''), ''39 Stripes'' (1979), and ''It’s About the Second Coming'' (1980), with Ormond dying during the making if the latter and having to be completed by his son, Tim.

===Donald W. Thompson & Russell Doughten===
'''{{wpl|Donald W. Thompson}}''' & '''[[Russell Doughten]]''' are the masterminds behind the ''A Thief in the Night'' film series, and the guys you can blame for shit like [[Left Behind]]. The two teamed up in the early 1970s to form "Mark IV Pictures" and would make twelve films together, before disagreements over management and distribution caused Thompson to drop out in 1984.

===Jon Gunn===
'''{{wpl|Jon Gunn}}''' (no relation to superhero movie creative {{wpl|James Gunn}}) is a Christsploitation director/writer/producer who began his junk art during the turn of the millennium with 2000's Eric Roberts-David A.R. White joint ''Mercy Street''. While he primarily makes crap, he is distinguished in trying to make his movies actually look like movies. Besides the shit nobody cares for, he has a hand in unexpected Christsploitation hits like ''Do You Believe?'', ''The Case for Christ'', and ''Jesus Revolution''.

===Harold Cronk===
'''{{wpl|Harold Cronk}}''' (no, not the dimwitted lackey from [[Disney]]’s ''{{wpl|The Emperor's New Groove}}'') was one of the main directors employed by Pure Flix in the 2010s, infamously directing the first two ''God's Not Dead'' movies, as well as shite like ''Jerusalem Countdown'', ''God Bless the Broken Road'', and ''Unbroken: Path to Redemption''. He went quiet after 2018, only to return in 2024 with ''Average Joe'', which is about some former marine who was fired for praying silently on the 50-yard line after games and then takes a legal stand for religious freedom.

===Timothy A. Chey===
'''{{wpl|Timothy A. Chey}}''' is an Asian-American (mixed Korean and Japanese descent) film director who was formerly an atheist before turning to the Christian faith. He actually made one good film, ''Fakin' Da Funk'' in 1997, before being mostly known for garbage. His Christsploitation input includes stuff like ''Suing the Devil'', ''The Genius Club'', ''Final: The Rapture'', ''David and Goliath'', ''Slamma Jamma'', and the aforementioned Falun Gong-funded ''The Firing Squad''.

===Matthew W. Crouch===
'''{{wpl|Matt Crouch (broadcaster)|Matthew W. Crouch}}'''  is a [[Trinity Broadcasting Network]] (TBN) bigwig who began his work there when he was a child. He's gotten far, as in 2015, he became the goddamn president of the company.

Crouch had a major hand in the network's production of movies, being an associate producer for TBN's first movie, ''China Cry''. In 1995, he and his wife would establish {{wpl|Gener8Xion Entertainment}} to produce Christsploitation crap like ''The Omega Code'', ''One Night with the King'', and ''Preacher's Kid''.

===Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman===
'''Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman''' have been "[[Euphemism|partners since childhood]]", collaborating on numerous films as writers, producers, and directors. They're best known for having written some of the really notorious Christsploitation films, including the first, second and fourth ''God's Not Dead'' films, ''Do You Believe?'', ''[[Unplanned]]'', and ''Nefarious''.

===LaLonde Brothers (Peter & Paul LaLonde)===
Founders of {{wpl|Cloud Ten Pictures|'''Cloud Ten Pictures'''|,}} they started by producing documentaries relating to Christian theological issues and such. Unlike the other creative teams consisting of two brothers, almost nothing is known about the LaLonde brothers individually. They really have a thing for Left Behind though, as they released a documentary with the same name in 1994 ''before'' the [[Tim LaHaye]] book (which was released 1995), followed by them creating the ''Apocalypse'' quadrology - a series of films with a ''very'' similar premise to Left Behind - in late 90s and early noughts, and then adopting LaHaye's Left Behind itself in the early noughts.

After the third Left Behind in 2005, Peter jumped off, with Paul taking charge. Paul failed to salvage the company due to publishing various crappers, with the final Cloud Ten movie being released in 2010 and their last documentary in 2014. Paul Lalonde then formed Stoney Lake Entertainment to co-produce the Nic Cage ''Left Behind'' in 2014. He was apparently one of the co-producers for Sorbo's Left Behind sequel to the Nic Cage one.

===Downes Brothers (Bobby & Kevin Downes)===
Founders of '''{{wpl|ChristianCinema.com}}''', with both acting as producers, while Bobby was the former manager of the company and Kevin also serving as a writer and an actor in theirs and others' Christploitation movies. Their best known film is probably ''{{wpl|Like Dandelion Dust||.}}'' They've also partnered with Lionsgate to make faith-based movies.

===Kendrick brothers (Alex & Stephen Kendrick)===
{{main|Alex Kendrick}}
The '''{{wpl|Kendrick Brothers}}''' are American filmmaking siblings Stephen and Alex (sometimes joined by a third one, Shannon) known for producing and directing faith-based films like ''Facing the Giants'', ''Fireproof'', ''Courageous'', ''War Room'', and ''Overcomer''. They initially operated as {{wpl|Sherwood Pictures}} (which was founded by Alex), with them subsequently operating under '''Kendrick Brothers Productions''' from 2013 onward.

===Erwin brothers (Andrew & Jon Erwin)===
The '''{{wpl|Erwin brothers}}''', Jon and Andrew, are a Christian filmmaking duo known for directing, producing, and writing successful faith-based films like ''I Can Only Imagine'', ''Woodlawn'', ''Jesus Revolution'', and ''American Underdog''. Their father is {{wpl|Hank Erwin||,}} a former [[Alabama]] state senator from the GOP. The Erwin brothers are the co-founders of production company Kingdom Story Company, which produces gospel-centered films in partnership with Lionsgate.<ref>[https://www.wsj.com/style/house-of-david-jon-erwin-wonder-project-angel-studios-d31ac703 WSJ: "Religious Movies Are Sweeping Hollywood. Rich Investors Are Pouring In Millions." by John Jurgensen (Sept. 3, 2024) (PAYWALLED)]</ref>

===Jason Campbell===
'''Jason Campbell''' is a writer/director/producer who combines the typical low budget Christian movie schlock with culture war bullshit. Some hits include ''Cancel Me Not'', about [[cancel culture]] and [[postmodernism]] in entertainment, ''And God Made Man'', a [[transphobia|transphobic]] movie about trans women in sports, ''Twitter Files'', about social media "censorship" of right wingers, and a trilogy about the [[coronavirus]].

==Examples==
{{hatnote|While this is a dynamic list that may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness, <u>it doesn't mean that each and every Christian movie ever made needs to be here.</u> Try to have only the notable/notorious examples exhibited here.}}
===The good===
These are considered the films that have some artistic merit and academic recognition:
* '''{{wpl|L'Inferno}} (1911)''': technical marvel for its time and a perfectly adequate filmization of the Inferno arc of [[The Divine Comedy]].
* '''{{wpl|The Passion of Joan of Arc}} (1928)'''
* '''{{wpl|Quo Vadis (1951 film)|Quo Vadis}} (1951)''': was nominated for multiple Academy Awards and is still critically well-received.
* '''{{wpl|The Ten Commandments (1956 film)|The Ten Commandments}} (1956)''':{{efn|One may argue that this is best thought of as an "[[Abraham|Abrahamic]]" movie, not exclusively a Christian one since [[Moses]] is a hero to [[Judaism]] and [[Islam]] as well. However, most people involved in the film, including Heston and DeMile, were devoted Christians, and the movie is marketed primarily to Christians, airing every year in the US at ABC since 1965 during [[Easter]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-04-08 |title=‘The Ten Commandments’: What You Don’t Know |url=https://writerofpop.com/2022/04/07/the-ten-commandments-what-you-dont-know/ |access-date=2025-09-01 |website=Writer of Pop Culture |language=en}}</ref>}} Cecil B. DeMile's remake of his previous 1923 filmization starring [[Charlton Heston]]. Not only was it the most financially successful film of 1956 (and second-most in the entire decade), at $122.7 million at the box office and adjusting for inflation, it ranks as the eighth most successful film of all time. In 1999, the film was chosen for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress because it was considered culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.
* '''{{wpl|Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur}} (1959)''': A remake {{wpl|Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925 film),|of the 1925 film|,}} William Wyler's biblical epic also stars Charlton Heston was the most expensive of its time. The film's technical prowess and daunting scale have helped it remain as a highly-regarded film to this day. This 3 and half hour biblical epic went on to win a record of eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, a feat that would only be matched decades later, by ''Titanic'' (1997) and ''The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' (2003). In 2008, the {{wpl|American Film Institute}} listed it as the second greatest American epic film of all time, after ''Lawrence of Arabia'' (1962)<ref>{{wpa|AFI's 10 Top 10}}</ref>
* '''{{wpl|King of Kings (1961 film)|King of Kings}} (1961)'''
* '''{{wpl|Becket (1964 film)|Becket}} (1964)''': movie with strong Christian themes, focusing on the conflict between King Henry II and his former friend Thomas Becket, who becomes the Archbishop of Canterbury. The film explores themes of religious duty, spiritual transformation, and the complexities of church-state relations as Becket ultimately chooses his faith and the Catholic Church's interests over his loyalty to the king, leading to his martydom. Bears huge amounts of prestigious film industry nominations and some wins.
* '''{{wpl|The Gospel According to St. Matthew (film)|The Gospel According to St. Matthew}}''' (1964): This adaptation comes from acclaimed Italian filmmaker, Pier Paolo Pasolini, the same director for very raunchy movies such as ''The Canterbury Tales'' and ''The Decameron'', as well as the controversial ''Salo: or the 120 days of Sodom''.
* '''{{wpl|Andrei Rublev (film|Andrei Rublev}} (1966)''': Regarded as one of the greatest films of all times not only (but also) by the [[Vatican]],<ref>{{wpa|Andrei Rublev}}</ref> this [[Soviet]] historical drama tells the story of the famous 15th century Russian icon painter while showing the afflictions of a very troubled time of [[Russia]]'s history. Due to the state atheism that prevailed in the Soviet Union during the period, the film was censored for a decade in its home country.
* '''{{wpl|The Exorcist}} (1973)''': Highly influential supernatural horror film. Considered Christian movie because it was written by a Catholic and based on a (supposedly) real event, features a Catholic priest as the protagonist, and explores themes of faith, spiritual battles, and sacrifice through a distinctly Catholic lens, despite the director's own agnostic views. The film depicts the power of faith to overcome evil, a central tenet of Christianity, and ends with a self-sacrificial act by the priest to save the possessed girl. Even though its director - William Friedkin - was an [[agnostic]] [[Jew]], who was more interested in exploring themes of doubt and uncertainty than in creating a "commercial for the Catholic Church", the film's narrative and its depiction of Catholic exorcism remain central to its story. With the exception to '''{{wpl|The Exorcist III}}''' (based on Blatty's sequel book ''{{wpl|Legion (Blatty novel)|Legion}}'') and technically '''{{wpl|The Ninth Configuration}}''' (also adapted from a novel sequel by Blatty), the rest of the Exorcist movies suck.
* '''{{wpl|Babette's Feast}} (1987)''': its widely considered a Christian film due to its overt religious subject matter, exploration of Christian themes and symbols, and profound religious artistry. The film portrays a pious 19th-century Danish Christian sect and contrasts different forms of Christian apprehension. It incorporates elements like sacrifice, grace, and the Eucharist, ultimately revealing a sacred dimension in reality through the lens of Christian thought.
*'''{{wpl|The Prince of Egypt}} (1998)''': Second movie by Dreamworks Animation, telling the story of the Exodus. Has gained more recognition since its release for Hans Zimmer's score, the performances by Val Kilmer and Ralph Fiennes, the animation, and the mature handling of the story, with retrospective reviews considering it one of the greatest animated movies of all time.
* '''{{wpl|Calvary (2014 film)|Cavalry}} (2014)''': deeply rooted in Christian themes and is even considered a significant Christian story by many, though it is not an overtly preachy or simplistic "Christian movie". It explores the anguish of clerical sex abuse and the concept of Christ's atonement through the life of a good priest in rural Ireland who faces a death threat. The film uses a dark, honest, and sometimes cynical portrayal of the human condition to highlight the strength and power of faith, virtue, and forgiveness.
* '''{{wpl|Silence (2016 film)|Silence}} (2016)''': Martin Scorsese's most recent Christian-themed movie since the controversial ''The Last Temptation of the Christ''. It explores the persecution of Christians in Japan through the story of two Jesuit priests, though some critics argue it presents a complex and potentially challenging, even blasphemous, view of faith and God. It examines the nature of faith, sacrifice, and the human cost of religious conviction.
* '''{{wpl|Amazing Grace (2018 film)|Amazing Grace}} (2018)''': documentary film about Aretha Franklin recording her titular live gospel album of the same name in a church. It captures captures a vibrant Black church setting where Franklin performs, with themes of Christian faith, joy, and the worth of Black lives being central to the experience.
* '''{{wpl|Pope Francis: A Man of His Word}} (2018)''': documentary film that deals with Christian themes and the life and messages of [[Pope Francis]].
* '''{{wpl|A Hidden Life (2019 film)|A Hidden Life}} (2019)''': directed by Terrence Malick, its about a real-world devout Catholic man during World War II, who refuses to swear an oath to [[Hitler]].  Thankfully it doesn’t present the story as a piece of devotional propaganda; the film is more contemplative, moral, and philosophical than overtly evangelistic.
* '''{{Wpl|The Two Popes}} (2019)''': biographical drama that explores the relationship between [[Pope Benedict XVI]] and [[Pope Francis]], delving into the Catholic Church's transition and internal struggles through the lens of their different viewpoints on faith, tradition, and the church's role in the modern world.

===The bad===
These mostly consist of commercial junk that have major Hollywood studio backing, with usually have middling/mixed critical reception. Also includes ones that might have been considered good previously, but are now seen much less positively.
* '''{{wpl|From the Manger to the Cross}} (1912)''': While a super-early filmization of the gospel/Jesus' story, it has not survived the test of time like some other 1910's films have.
* '''[[The Godless Girl]] (1928)''': {{wpl|Cecil B. DeMille}}'s drama and one of his noted failures. It's about a atheist girl and a religious boy who are sent to a reformatory after another girl dies in a clash between the two's groups.
*'''{{wpl|The Greatest Story Ever Told}}''' (1965): The biblical epic is based on the life of Jesus, who gathered admirers and enemies around him, from his humble beginnings in Bethlehem to his resurrection. It's credited for being the film that broke the camel's back in regards to audience tolerance towards biblical epics, leading to the genre's quick death afterwards.
*'''{{wpl|The Bible: In the Beginning...}}''' (1966):{{efn|Just like ''The Ten Commandments'', this movie tells a Abrahamic and pre-Christian story, but was also aimed at a Christian audience (and indeed, "[[Bible]]" refers to the anthology of books that Christians regard as holy scripture, while "Tanakh" is the Jewish word).}} It was produced by schlockmeister {{wpl|Dino De Laurentiis||,}} it covers the first 22 chapters of [[Genesis]]. Let's just say that the book is better.
* '''[[The Passion of the Christ]] (2004)''': Mel Gibson's Hollywood-grade torture porn about the final hours of Jesus Christ on earth, mainly known for its excess brutality, such as the whipping scenes and the crucifixion at the end. Although it was critically well-received and has win some half-important awards and gotten nominations at the Academic Awards, there's been some re-evaluations recently that question if it is really a good movie or a glorified vanity project.
* '''{{wpl|The Nativity Story}} (2006)''': Subpar account of the Nativity of Jesus, more well known for the controversial real-life teen pregnancy of the actress who played Virgin Mary.
* '''{{wpl|Exodus: Gods and Kings|Exodus: Gods and Kings}} (2014)''': 2014 flop by Ridley Scott. Widely considered a bad film due to several major issues, including significant [[Whitewashing in film|whitewashing]] in its casting, a lack of narrative coherence and poor pacing, the film's divergence from its biblical source material, and a generally weak screenplay with wooden dialogue. Critics also pointed to the choppy editing and a general lack of focus and identity, stemming in part from the studio reportedly forcing a drastic cut from a much longer version. Also its portrayal of the Judeo-Christian God as a petulant child drew some criticism, [[Divine retribution|although it's]] [[Examples of God personally killing people|not really a lie]].
* '''{{wpl|Hacksaw Ridge}} (2016)''': Although it was critically well-received like Gibson's prior Passion of the Christ, the film actually has a fair amounts of problems. Its premise essentially white-washes a [[Seventh-day Adventist]], and it's also very simple-minded, sentimental and godlessly violent to no real purpose.
* '''{{wpl|Ben-Hur (2016 film)|Ben-Hur}} (2016)'''
* '''{{wpl|The Young Messiah}} (2016)''': It got a mixed reception, with critics citing issues like historical inaccuracies, a weak story that recycles later events, a lack of emotional depth, questionable casting, and whitewashing, though some praise was given to its portrayal of the Holy Family and the humanistic elements of the story. 
* '''[[Sound of Freedom]] (2023)''': It was produced by a faith-centered studio, Angel Studios. While the film itself is a thriller focused on combating child trafficking and isn't overtly religious in its narrative, it appeals to a faith-based audience and was promoted with messages like "God's children are not for sale". It has been supported by conservative Christian communities and figures like Mel Gibson. It received mixed critical reception, but it was a box-office success, making $251 million with a $14.5 million budget.

===And the "this film is ''why'' I am an atheist."===
And finally we come what is pretty much the meat and potatoes of Christian film industry. These films are mostly independent and made cheaply by studios a common moviegoer is likely unable to recognize. A lot of these are considered some of the absolute worst movies ever made. These include:
* '''{{wpl|Gabriel Over the White House}} (1933)''': Proto-[[Trumpism|Trumpian]] schlock about a corrupt President that has a vision of the [[Angel|archangel Gabriel]] after a near-fatal car accident. The divine experience transforms him into a [[Benevolent dictatorship|"benevolent but dictatorial leader"]] who uses any means necessary to end the [[Great Depression]], solve social ills, and establish world peace. Since its release, the film has been controversially discussed as a possible advertisement for a [[totalitarian]] leadership, being released around the time when both Hitler and Mussolini were taking over their perspective countries.
* '''{{Wpl|If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?|| (1971)}}''': [[Red scare]] exploitation horror directed by Ron Ormond featuring [[Southern Baptist]] minister Estus "will you come" Pirkle. Its considered the first in the Pirkle-Ormond trilogy. Despite supposedly advocating Christian values and condemning social degeneration, [[Hypocrisy|it has no qualms to show some absolutely deranged violence]]. Indeed, its director is an exploitation filmmaker and it shows, from instances of mass murder to a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taYThk1FX2k&t=80s scene where a communist officer cuts off a child’s head and tosses it tumbling on the ground].
* '''{{wpl|A Thief in the Night (film series)|A Thief in the Night series}} (1972-1983)''': series of Evangelical horror films about people who don't get raptured away. As a result, [[United Nations]] forms a task-force called UNITE, to track down those who didn't receive the mark of the beast and detain them. Its main protagonist(s) choose Christ instead and try avoid UNITE's wrath. If it sounds familiar, you are not crazy, as [[Timothy LaHaye]] and Jerry Jenkins acknowledged series as [[Left Behind]]'s inspiration.<ref name="TimBeal2023"/>
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0412540/ Burning Hell] (1974)''': second film in the Pirkle-Ormond trilogy, its about Pirkle warning people about the reality of Hell, presenting it as a literal place of eternal torment for those who do not accept Jesus Christ as their savior. The narrative uses dramatic reenactments and graphic imagery to portray Hell, including depictions of biblical figures and various types of sinners suffering eternal punishment. Very much Old Testament-fear mongering, using biblical scripture and fire-and-brimstone preaching.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1830833/ The Believer's Heaven] (1977)''': third film in the Pirkle-Ormond trilogy, that, unlike its fearmongering predecessors, focuses on the rewards of salvation rather than punishment. It still features some exploitation violence, but not to degree the prior two in the trilogy do. Its mostly ignored because Christian moviegoers (and moviegoers in general) wanting blood. Also features [[Jack Hyles]] as one of the guest speakers along with Pirkle.
* '''[[Rock: It's Your Decision]] (1982)''': Tragicomically miscalculated propaganda piece in which some stupid-ass self-centered teenage convert is throwing hissy-fits about his friends listening to the wrong kind of music -- [[Satanic panic|SATANIC]] [[Rock music|ROCK MUSIC]].
* '''{{wpl|A Little Piece of Heaven (film)|A Little Piece of Heaven}} (1991, TV movie)''': Early Kirk Cameron Christploitation flick, in which he plays a insane person living at a pig farm who drugs and abducts children from a local orphanage to come play with his sister (Jenny Robertson going full [[Ableism|Simple Jack]]). He tells them that he is a angel and that the children are dead, with his pig farm being the heaven. Rest of the movie is as normal as the premise suggests.
* '''{{wpl|Apocalypse (film series)|Apocalypse}} film series (1998-2001)''': developed by Peter and Paul LaLonde, these films are a ''A Thief in the Night/Left Behind'' rip-off(s) about rapture, great tribulation and the Antichrist running an one world goverment. Somehow, LaLonde brothers would get a chance to adapt Left Behind books into movies, despite making such a blatant copy-cat story.
* '''{{wpl|The Omega Code}} (1999)''': independent apocalyptic thriller made with a church-based marketing campaign and financed by the [[Trinity Broadcasting Network]]. In it, a Rabbi in Jerusalem discovers a hidden code in the Torah that allows him to access predictions of future events. This upsets Media Mogul/[[European Union]] Chairman Stone Alexander who wants the code to take over the world, but popular author/motivational speaker Dr. Gillen Lane (played by {{wpl|Casper Van Dien|the Starship Troopers guy}}) rises up to oppose the ambitions of this globalist anti-Christ. It was followed by a sequel/prequel '''{{wpl|Megiddo: The Omega Code 2}}''' in 2001. The first film almost made twice its budget back, with the sequel bombing hard by making only $6 million of it's $20 million budget back.
* '''{{wpl|Mercy Streets}} (2000)''': Jon Gunn actioner made with shoestring budget and it ''still'' only made est. 29% of its budget back. One of David A.R. White's early major Christian films.
* '''{{wpl|Bless the Child}} (2000)''': Kim Basinger flop about her trying to rescue her child from a [[Satanism|satanic cult]]. The film earned her a Razzie nomination and at 4% Rotten Tomatoes score, it's one of Top 100 worst rated movies on that site.<ref>[https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/worst-movies-of-all-time/ Rotten Tomatoes: 100 Worst Movies of All Time by Editorial, ranked #91 (retrieved Sept 12, 2025)]</ref> It presents the usual battle between good (Christianity) and evil (Satanism) and incorporates several Christian allegories, symbols, and Catholic elements, though it also blends some aspects of the [[New Age]] with its themes of spirituality and battling evil. 
* '''[[Left Behind]] franchise''': based on the apocalyptic Christian novel series by Timothy LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, this series has not only been adapted to movies once (a trilogy stemming from 2000-2005), but ''twice'' (2014 + 2023). The original trilogy had Kirk Cameron as protagonist Buck Williams, navigating the post-[[rapture]] world. It was later rebooted in 2014 with Nic Cage in the lead, followed by a crowd-funded sequel (campaign lasting between 2015-2017) that was released released 2023, being directed ''and'' starred Kevin Sorbo. It made some $4.2 million at the box-office.
* '''{{wpl|Time Changer}} (2002)''': time travel movie about a scholar in 1890 writing a book about how "Christian morality can be taught without the authority of Jesus", with a wiser professor warning him to not publish it and introducing a time machine, with him taking the scholar to year 2000. There, the scholar will see how decadent society has become and makes the scholar rethink about publishing his book in the past.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0315398/ Christmas Rush] (2002, TV Movie)''': technically Dean Cain's first Christian movie in which he is the lead. Its a ''Die Hard'' clone in which there is less "Yippee ki yay motherfucker" and more praying for Jesus to disarm the terrorists.
* '''{{wpl|Bells of Innocence}} (2003)''': horror-drama starring son-father actors Mike and [[Chuck Norris]] (plus David A.R. White, because of course). Its about Mike Norris' character, whose faith in God is hanging by a thread after his daughter was murdered. In order to carry out some kind of mission, he and some friends hand out Bibles on a plane to Mexico. The plane crashes and they end up in the wilderness, and it's not long before they discover that there's something strange about the place. It's only claim to infamy being that it's the worst reviewed Chuck Norris movie ever, along with his 2024's ''Agent Recon''.
* '''{{wpl|Six: The Mark Unleashed }} (2004)''': Trinity Broadcasting Network-distributed action-drama about post-rapture world in which the Antichrist rules with the help of a satellite and "mark of the beast" chip implant technology. Three heroic political prisoners eventually encounter a mysterious stranger who holds the key to their escape and humanity's survival. The four allies must escape execution, outwit the authoritarian police and team up with the world's most wanted fugitive: the leader of the resistance.
* '''{{wpl|The Ultimate Gift}} (2006)''': Fox Faith-produced sentimental and heavy-handed drama dud.
* '''[[Fireproof]] (2008)''': indie Christian drama starring Kirk Cameron as Caleb, a firefighter who works hard to save lives. At home, Caleb and his wife's marriage is crumbling and they have decided to file for divorce. Caleb's father manages to convince him to try a method he calls "The Love Dare" for forty days that will get their marriage back on its feet. Made with $500,000, it made $33.5 million at the box-office.
* '''[[Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed]] (2008)''': [[Creationist]] propaganda film featuring Ben "Bueller... Bueller..." Stein that's presented as a documentary, promoting the claim that academia unfairly suppresses and excludes those who support [[intelligent design]].
* '''{{wpl|C Me Dance}} (2009)''': thriller about a 17-year old girl who wants to joint the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, but she then finds out that she has leukemia. Distraught, she starts rebelling towards her father and - GASP - God. This prompts her father to keep his daughter close to God, try to make her heart softer, and help her live out her dream before she passes away, all while the father struggles with the pain of losing her so young. God responds by giving her the power to ''bring people to Christ against their will.''
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1514048/ Loving the Bad Man] (2010)''': an extremely distasteful "film" that is about a woman who has to learn to forgive her rapist, it also spouts some of the cheapest production values you'll ever see.
* '''{{wpl|Christmas with a Capital C}} (2011)''': vindictive [[War on Christmas]] movie, that not only has a rage-boner towards atheists, but also [[Antisemitism|disdainful]] towards [[Judaism]] and [[Kwanzaa]] as well. Hope you like [[Brad Stine]]'s comedy antics!
* '''{{wpl|Jerusalem Countdown (film)|Jerusalem Countdown}} (2011; alternatively titled just "Countdown")''': based on a 2006 [[John Hagee]] book of the same name, this Harold Cronk directed espionage thriller is about a FBI agent played by David A.R. White, who has to find some nuclear bombs that have been smuggled to America and stop them before they go off.
* '''[[The Life Zone]] (2011)''': anti-abortion "horror" film. Most of the runtime is just characters watching anti-abortion propaganda.
* '''{{wpl|Last Ounce of Courage}} (2012)''': Christian persecution complex/War on Christmas film about a Christian superpatriot motorcyclist's community and their [[freedom of religion]] being under attack by "totally not [[ACLU]]" and ''da gobernment''. Also notorious for its robocall campaign involving [[Mike Huckabee]].<ref name="HR_EG_17"/>
* '''{{wpl|I'm in Love with a Church Girl}} (2013)''': "based on true story" romance-drama about a wealthy drug dealer finding faith and redemption when God puts a Christian girl in his path. It got its ass torn by the critics, though it has its fair share of unintentionally funny scenes, such as the one angry monologue delivered in a church.
* '''Revelation Road trilogy (2013-2014)''': trio of Mad Max-inspired post-apocalyptic movies starring David A.R. White.
* '''[[God's Not Dead|God's Not Dead series]] (2014-2024)''': Credited for the 2010's Christsploitation wave, these films namely follow a Christian pastor named Rev. David "Dave" Hill (played by David A. R. White), who  often challenged by [[Straw man|straw]] [[atheists]] to show evidence to prove that [[God]] is real to support their beliefs. They were originally financially successful, but they've been on a steady decline with the 5th installment going largely ignored.
* '''{{wpl|Old Fashioned}} (2014)''': crack-brained love story by PureFlix, between a screwy young woman and an demented [[Billy_Graham#Billy_Graham_rule|Modesto Manifesto]]-believing carpenter guy (oh, subtle), who also happened to film and sell college girl gone wild videos. All this happening in a town where the only radio show is a one-trick pony misogynistic shock jock, who was the male protagonist's old friend. Any similarity between how characters in this movie and normal people romantically connect in [[real life]] is purely coincidental.
* '''[[Persecuted]] (2014):''' If you are thinking this is about Christian persecution complex, then you are correct!
* '''[[Saving Christmas]] (2014)''': Kirk Cameron stars as thinly-veiled version of himself where he explains his own Christian views on Christmas to his brother, that's supposed to be the audience surrogate. Due to getting wide enough distribution, it has been labelled one of the worst movies of all time, with Cameron not being happy about it on social media.
* '''[[A Matter of Faith]] (2014)''': Movie about a young Christian girl is struggling with her faith during a biology lesson, and her dad tries to help her stay true to her beliefs.
* '''[[The Principle]] (2014)''': documentary film that, while not a traditional Christian movie, explores themes of [[geocentrism]] and Christian creationism, including skepticism of the scientific consensus. It gained notoriety for promoting pseudoscientific arguments and for misleading some of the scientists interviewed, who later claimed they were tricked into appearing in the film to promote a hidden agenda. The film suggests a connection between science, faith, and a belief in Earth's central position in the universe.
* '''{{wpl|Christian Mingle: The Movie}} (2014)''': romcom based on a {{wpl|ChristianMingle|eponymous dating app|.}} Vince Mancini of {{wpl|Uproxx}} said it best when he described the film as an "unintentional parody of whiteness."
* '''{{wpl|Do You Believe? (film)|Do You Believe?}} (2015)''': "smug, self-satisfied mediocrity" that Evangelicals ''really'' loved for some reason. Lots of heavy-handed preaching, reliance on stereotypes, and ridiculous, over-the-top plot points, particularly a coincidental pileup of accidents that feels like a contrivance to bring events together.
* '''{{wpl|War Room (film)|War Room}} (2015)''': dramedy about a black couple whose marriage is failing. Thankfully, the wife's insane client, a black elderly woman who likes to use banal military jargon played by Karen Abercrombie, convinces her that prayer can save their relationship and by creating a prayer room in her dress closet, she hopes to "[[Spiritual warfare|wage war]]" to maintain the unity of her family and stop her husband from cheating on her. The film's biggest narrative issue is that the husband is a dickbag that doesn't change as a person nor faces real repercussions for his actions to prompt this change. Instead, everybody around him has to do the heavy-lifting or gets the burnt of the husband's actions. Also there's bizarre, arguably racist, running gag about the wife's feet smelling bad. Then it ends in a bizarre tangent by the black elderly woman, who calls the audience to raise a generation of prayer warriors that won't surrender to [[Fun:Washington, D.C.|Washington]]'s atheist [[Democratic Party|liberals]]. Regrettably, while the film was pretty roundly trashed by film critics, it was sleeper hit that became the most watched movie in USA during its second weekend of release. Ultimately it earned $74 million worldwide against a production budget of just $3 million. In 2024, it got a sequel/spin-off named '''{{wpl|The Forge (2024 film)|The Forge|,}}''' which sees Abercrombie's crazy old lady returning.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4172402/ Audacity] (2015)''': Christian message movie produced by [[Ray Comfort]] that's supposed to explore how "Christians can share their beliefs about homosexuality with gay individuals from a perspective of common sinfulness, rather than condemnation." The movie presents biblical views on sin and its consequences, encouraging Christians to share the Gospel and highlight that all people, regardless of their sexual orientation, are in need of a Savior. Its generally received negatively with Ray Comfort using lot of [[presuppositionalism]] about the [[LGBT]] people, as well as the whole thing coming off as Ray Comfort just patting himself in the back despite not actually properly addressing any real issues.
* '''{{wpl|Faith of Our Fathers (film)|Faith of Our Fathers}} (2015)''': David A.R. White flick about two grown men who lost their fathers during the 'nam. One of the worst faith-based films, with criticisms directed towards a mediocre script, crap acting, and a heavy-handed message. 
* '''{{wpl|Let There Be Light (2017 film)|Let There Be Light}} (2017)''': Kevin Sorbo's vanity project, he liked that scene from ''God's Not Dead'' where the atheist gets hit by a car so much, he made a entire movie about the premise.
* '''{{wpl|The Trump Prophecy}} (2018)''': based on some prophecy by a [[crank]] fire-fighter who apparently called Donald Trump's 2016 election win. The film presents Trump's election as a divine act of God and includes alleged prophecies about Trump, such as arresting corrupt officials and finding cures for [[cancer]] and Alzheimer's ([[Robert F. Kennedy Jr.|yeah, about that]]). The film ends with interviews of conservative talking heads.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6105774/ The Reliant] (2019)''': action film about a 19-year-old girl struggling to care for her siblings after an economic collapse causes widespread rioting and social unrest. The story follows the family as they try to survive, facing debates about self-defense versus pacifism amidst the chaos. The movie explores themes of [[survivalism]], self-defense, and Christian pacifism, as the protagonist grapples with the ethical questions of violence in a lawless world. 
* '''[[Unplanned]] (2019)''': often described as a Christian film because it is an anti-abortion drama based on the true story of a former [[Planned Parenthood]] director, Abby Johnson, and it features religious themes and a message of pro-life activism that appeals to a Christian audience.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8064418/ Assassin 33 A.D.] (2020)''': real bonkers Terminator clone in which student scientists at an university create [[time travel]], but a wealthy tech mogul/Muslim extremist uses the technology to send killers back in time to assassinate Jesus and stop the rise of Christianity.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12981810/ Finding Jesus] (2020)''': Christian mockbuster of ''Finding Nemo''. Hope you like CGI abomination aquatic life staring into your soul.
* '''[[The Mind Polluters]] (2021)''': propaganda doc warning Christian parents that public schools are grooming their children.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13788842/ 2025: The World Enslaved by a Virus] (2021)''': dystopian thriller directed by Simon Wesely and starring his groomer brother Joshua<ref>{{cite web |author= r/WhitePeopleTwitter |date=2022 |title=  YouTube pastor waited 4 years for his girlfriend to turn 18 and propose |url= https://www.reddit.com/r/WhitePeopleTwitter/comments/117l9qm/youtube_pastor_waited_4_years_for_his_girlfriend/|website= Reddit |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20250117022816/https://www.reddit.com/r/WhitePeopleTwitter/comments/117l9qm/youtube_pastor_waited_4_years_for_his_girlfriend/|archive-date= January 17, 2025|access-date=September 1, 2025}}</ref>, in which [[communism]] took over the world during [[COVID-19 pandemic]], during which Christianity was outlawed. Now the oppressed heroes form a underground resistance by spreading the good word... Which is pretty much lot of sitting around involving people with very thick German accents. Needless to say it's the worst film to come out of [[Germany]] to ''not'' have either {{wpl|Leni Riefenstahl}} or {{wpl|Uwe Boll}} helming it. It's at the top 10 worst rated movies at Letterboxd and has a dire 1.0 score at IMDb - being rated ''even worse'' than Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas.
* '''{{wpl|The Firing Squad (2024 film)|The Firing Squad}} (2024)''': Epoch Times/Falun Gong money-laundering scheme which is "based on a true story" about "Bali Nine" drug smugglers, with makers turning it into a Christian film just because real-life smugglers sang "amazing grace" before they were executed. Features Kevin Sorbo, Eric Roberts and fucking Cuba Gooding Jr. (presumably because he's gone to hide behind right-wingers to avoid the P. Diddy scandal that he's a suspect/accessory in.)

===Plus films that are contentious if Christian film or not===
These films come in two varieties. The first half consists of films that ''look'' Christian films but do not fully embrace Christian ideals/are rejected by Christians for not being Christian enough. The other half are movies which don't come off as Christian movies on the surface, but are observed to have Christian strong themes that make them like the film.
* '''{{wpl|Spartacus (film)|Spartacus}} (1960)''': a historical epic based on the real-life Thracian gladiator Spartacus and his slave revolt in the first century BC. There is a noted a Christ-like parallel with the film depiction of Spartacus, with the character representing a moralistic, good vs. evil struggle against the oppressive Roman system, with the narrative structure also following a similar path that of Jesus'. Although the film is set before Christianity, its themes of a rebellious leader fighting for the oppressed, a defiant stance against an unjust system, and a final, public display of his body for symbolic warning, mirror aspects of the Gospel story, leading to its interpretation as a figure prefiguring Jesus.
* '''{{wpl|The Agony and the Ecstasy (film)|The Agony and the Ecstasy}} (1965)''': historical drama about the painting of the Sistine Chapel (a significant event in Catholic history), focusing on the artistic and personal conflicts between Michelangelo and Pope Julius II. While it contains religious themes and depicts spiritual devotion through art, its primary focus is the interpersonal drama, the relationship between art and faith, and the artistic quest for perfection.
* '''[[Jesus Christ Superstar]] (1973 + 1999 remake)''': filmatization of the Andrew Lloyd Webber rock-opera. Although it is about [[Jesus]] and the biblical events before his crucifixtion, it's despised by lot of Christians for playing down/lacking the [[spiritual]] angle, as well as for humanizing [[Judas]]; on the other hand, a lot of Christians enjoy it, particularly if they take the view that it was intended as entertainment more than Gospel, and also because ''Superstar'' heavily engages with the politics around Jesus' Crucifixion that more spiritual versions frequently elide over.
* '''{{wpl|Superman (1978 film)|Superman}} (1978)''': while not explicitly an Christian film, it is widely considered to contain significant Christian allegorical elements and functions as a secular analogue to the Jesus story. Themes like a father figure from "the heavens" (Jor-El) sending his son to save humanity, Superman's sacrifice and rebirth, and his embodiment of traditional moral values are frequently compared to the life of Jesus Christ. According to co-writer {{wpl|Tom Mankiewicz||,}} the Christian allegories were intentional.<ref>STARLOG: "Steel Dreams: Interview with Tom Mankiewicz" by Daniel Dickholtz (December 16, 1998), pp. 67–71.</ref> Some Christian organizations (such as ''Christianity Today'' and ''Plugged In'') use the film as a basis for discussions about traditional moral values and faith, highlighting these parallels.
* '''{{wpl|Friday the 13th (franchise)|Friday the 13th film series}}''': one of the biggest slasher franchises in the 1980s about a endlessly-resurrecting serial killer Jason Voorhees{{efn|At least when its not his Nancy Reagan-looking mother or some Jason-wannabe imposter.}} going around and killing bunch of sex-addled and drug-using teenagers. While Jason is technically the villain, these films usually don't give a damn about the character's victims, with most of the movies instead constructed to make Jason's killing them look as impressive as possible. Additionally, most of these victims are guilty of what Saint Ronnie and the religious right considered moral failings in the 1980s, with the series is essentially just a massive murder fest of what 80s conservatives saw as degenerates, with characters who survive Jason often being more conservative in their morals.
* '''{{wpl|Witness (1985 film)|Witness}} (1985)''': neo-noir crime thriller film starring Harrison Ford that takes place within an Amish community - which is a sect of Christians - and explores cultural contrasts between the city and their simple way of life. While the film's plot involves the Amish community, its focus is on the thriller and romantic elements of the story rather than serving as a spiritual film.
* '''[[The Last Temptation of Christ]] (1988)''':  directed by Martin Scorsese and based on the 1955 novel Nikos Kazantzakis, it depicts the life of Jesus as a human being who, like all people, faces temptations such as fear, doubt, depression, reluctance, and lust. Christians at the time did ''not'' respond to it positively - especially in regards to Jesus being tempted by “the sin of the flesh” - with them trying to get it [[cancel culture|cancelled to oblivion]].
* '''{{wpl|End of Days (film)|End of Days}} (1999)''': Hollywood action-thriller starring [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] that uses Christian themes and biblical prophecies about the end of the millennium as a backdrop for its story of Satan trying to procreate the Antichrist. It features positive Christian elements such as faith vs. force and a climactic church confrontation and overall theme of God providing strength to defeat evil. However, the Christian audiences apparently found its graphic sex, nudity, swearing, portrayal of biblical concepts and level of violence objectionable.
* '''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1270792/ Sunday School Musical] (2008)''': A mockbuster of High School Musical made by The Asylum of ''Sharknado'' fame, under Faith Films. More interested in cashing in on crowd than making a message. 
* '''{{wpl|Ida (film)|Ida}} (2013)''': Holocaust film that explores themes of religious and cultural identity, featuring a protagonist who is a Catholic nun but discovers she is Jewish. The film centers on her journey to uncover her past and her family's history, which was rooted in Judaism and tragically ended during World War II. Got a {{wpl|List of accolades received by Ida|hell of a lot of accolades}} and angered Polish far-right.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jan/30/pawel-pawlikowski-ida-criticism-film The Guardian: "Ida director Pawel Pawlikowski stands ground against complaints of historical inaccuracy" by Ben Child (30 Jan 2015)]</ref>
* '''[[Noah (film)|Noah]] (2014)''': an epic biblical drama directed by Darren Aronofsky, inspired by the Biblical story of Noah's Ark but with significant creative liberties taken.  While it features elements of faith and biblical themes, the film does take a fantastical and interpretive approach, leading to some controversy and debate among religious groups about its accuracy and faithfulness to the original text. The general consensus among many Christian groups and commentators was negative, with strong warnings against the film's inaccuracies and thematic deviations. While a few individuals or groups found merit in it, the overwhelming sentiment from conservative Christian perspectives was that the film was not a trustworthy or appropriate depiction of the biblical Noah story.
* '''{{wpl|First Reformed}} (2017)''': while deeply connected to Christianity, it's not a traditional faith-based film per se. Rather, its a provocative exploration of faith, doubt, and despair within a Reformed church setting. It critiques "pop Protestantism" and the institutional hypocrisy of mega-churches while also grappling with themes like environmental crisis, personal suffering, and the difficulty of maintaining hope and faith in a troubled world.
* '''{{wpl|A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood}} (2019)''': based on the life of {{wpl|Fred Rogers|| (alias Mister Rogers),}} it's not overtly Christian in its presentation, but it does contain strong spiritual and moral themes that are heavily influenced by Christian values that Rogers lived by.

==Parodies and movies criticizing Christianity==
{{Expand section}}
Wonderful thing about [[freedom of speech]] is that you can criticize any other religion, ideology, or belief system -- including Christianity. As the religion as its dirt and other instances of stupid, it has generated movies that examine this dirt and stupidity.
===Parodies/satire===
* '''{{wpl|Elmer Gantry (film)|Elmer Gantry}} (1960)''': story about the titular villain protagonist who is a charismatic and opportunistic traveling salesman, who teams up with a evangelical sister to peddle religion to small-town America. While not a full-throathed attack on Christianity, it serves as a searing critique of the exploitation and moral compromise that can exist within highly visible religious movements. The film uses satire to expose how charlatans like the titular character exploit public faith for personal gain, blurring the lines between genuine spirituality and opportunistic self-interest.<ref>[https://religion.ua.edu/blog/2016/01/26/elmer-gantry/ "Elmer Gantry: The Trap of Hypocrisy and Greed" by Ashley Daugherty (retrieved Sept. 16, 2025)]</ref>
* '''[[Life of Brian]] (1979)''': [[Monty Python]] comedy movie about a ''very naughty boy'' named Brian who happened to be born on the same day, as well as next door to, Jesus, and is thusly mistaken for a messianic figure. It satirizes religious conventions and it did not go down well with the fundamentalists.<ref name="DestaVanityFair2017"/>
* '''{{wpl|Leap of Faith (film)|Leap of Faith}} (1992)''': satirical comedy in which Steve Martin plays a religious shyster. Not the greatest comedy, but functional.
* '''{{wpl|But I'm a Cheerleader}} (1999)''':  satirical teen romcom about a high school girl being sent to [[gay conversion therapy]]. The movie uses humor to criticize the very concept of conversion therapy and challenges the belief that "being gay is a disease" that can be fixed through religious teaching. The film shows how a religious group tries to use Christian values to make a young girl hide her feelings for women, making it a story about how harmful and ridiculous homophobia can be when it's dressed up as religious truth.
* '''[[Dogma (film)|Dogma]] (1999)''': One of the better Kevin Smith films, it uses Catholic doctrine and Christian mythology as its subject matter to examine at themes of faith, heaven, and hell, and features elements like a {{wpl|Buddy Christ|"Buddy Christ"}} and a "doo-doo demon". Even though its creators apparently made it to just be a irreverent film, it caused protests from religious groups who found it blasphemous.<ref name="DestaVanityFair2017">[https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/photos/2017/04/religious-movies-gallery?srsltid=AfmBOopl-KxzQeuxN5JSxN2QNjS1vE56TDwvSjWu4Pdrh4EfGDr4t_CL Vanity Fair: "11 Films That Caused Major Religious Controversy" by Yohana Desta (April 14, 2017)]</ref>
* '''[[Saved!]] (2004)''': a satirical comedy that parodies certain aspects of evangelical Christianity, particularly focusing on the hypocrisy, judgment, and intolerance found within some Christian communities and high schools. The film uses dark humor and exaggerated characters to highlight these issues. However, its ending was altered at last minute, with the original super-dark massacre getting replaced by a end message asking Christians to re-evaluate themselves.
* '''{{wpl|The Book of Clarence}} (2023)''': Kinda similar gist to ''Life of Brian'', its about down-on-his-luck man named Clarence living in Jerusalem in 33 AD who seeks to capitalize on the rise of Jesus Christ, claiming to be a new Messiah sent by God, in an attempt to free himself from debt and begin a life of glory. Got a mixed reception, but considered unique in how it satirizes religion.

===Plots with Bible-thumping villains===
* '''[[Da Vinci Code]] (2006)''': while the film and its sequels use Christian imagery and locations, they it reinterpret the religion through a lens of conspiracy and a re-imagined history of Christianity, particularly focusing on the sacred feminine. It's ultimately critical of Christianity, though it has its own brand of BS involved, presenting fictional claims that contradict traditional Christian beliefs and history.

===Documentaries===
* '''[[Jesus Camp]] (2006)''': movie about how Christianity indoctrinates children.
* '''{{wpl|Religulous}} (2008)''': [[Bill Maher]] doc which examines the stupidity of Abrahamic religions, Christianity included.

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note|2}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Christianity]]
[[Category:Culture]]
[[Category:Films]]
[[Category:Propaganda]]
[[Category:Media]]

Categories: Christianity, Culture, Films, Propaganda, Media