The road to The Jesus Rolls has been an interesting one, as the upcoming movie only started coming to fruition after John Turturro requested permission from The Big Lebowski directors Ethan and Joel Coen to reprise his character from that film. They said he could take the character to new places and now Turturro has explained what the new movie is really about.
We’ve already gotten a look at The Jesus Rolls through its first trailer, but prior to its release, director John Turturro spoke out about the goal of the movie, noting it took some time for the premise to work itself out but now The Jesus Rolls is ready to hit theaters. He said:
It shows how stupid men are. That’s what the movie is kinda about – the women are the stronger, more together characters. I had to tweak it a little bit but now I feel really good about it. It’s basically an exploration of Jesus getting out of jail. It’s a comedy, but a very human comedy.
Speaking to The Independent ahead of the film’s big February release, John Turturro also called the movie “racy” and confirmed he had the Coen brothers’ permission to move forward with the project.
In fact, John Turturro has been talking about playing Jesus on the big screen again for years and years ahead of getting the greenlight. Once he did get permission to take on the role again, it was also some time since we first heard The Big Lebowski spinoff might be happening. Reports of it coming together first started rolling out back in 2016. It’s unclear when The Jesus Rolls got traction, but now we have a trailer and a release date, so it’s a real thing that’s coming.
John Turturro has a slew of little known directing projects under his belt, including Romance & Cigarettes, which also starred Bobby Cannavale and Susan Sarandon (as well as an all-star cast also including James Gandolfini, his Lebowski co-star Steve Buscemi, Mandy Moore, Christopher Walken, Mary-Louise Parker and Kate Winslet).
People clearly enjoy working with the actor-turned-director, which is evident with The Jesus Rolls. Here are some key players in the cast:
Bobby CannavaleSusan SarandonJon HammChristopher WalkenAudrey TautouPete DavidsonJ.B. Smoove
If you haven’t caught the trailer for the John Turturro led (and directed) Big Lebowski spinoff yet, you can see more about The Jesus Rolls below, but it should be pointed out that early looks from film festivals compare the movie more to 1974’s Going Places than the nineties Coen brothers film the character originated in and it may very well attract a different sort of fanbase.
Which leads me to ask: Would you watch a spinoff about Jesus? Or will you let this one roll by? Personally, I feel this sort of spinoff can't be any more of a mismatch than when The Dude showed up during a Super Bowl ad, but I definitely don't speak for everyone.
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