The American actor who portrayed the role of Jesus Christ in Mel Gibson’s 2004 film The Passion of the Christ is none other than Jim Caviezel. The film was named the most virulently anti-Semitic film made since German World War II propaganda films by Jami Bernard of the New York Daily News.
Jim Caviezel Bio
Born September 26, 1968, as Jim Patrick Caviezel, in Mount Vernon, Washington, USA, Jim is a devout Catholic who fights for his faith wherever he is. . While growing up, he was primarily interested in religion and basketball, but turned to acting instead after suffering a foot injury in his sophomore year at college.
Caviezel attended Mount Vernon High School for two years between 1984 and 1985, before moving to Seattle, Washington so he could play basketball at O’Dea High School, an all-boys high school. In 1985 he transferred to another Catholic school, John F. Kennedy Memorial High School in Burren Washington, where he also played basketball and graduated in 1987. For college, he enrolled in Bellevue where he played college basketball.
Jim would later transfer to the University of Washington as a sophomore after a foot injury ended his dream of becoming an NBA player. With this transfer, he specialized in theater and obtained a degree in theater. Although he couldn’t play professional basketball, Jim said it gave him the direction and discipline he needed in life.
Acting career
Jim Caviezel’s career in films began with a play in Seattle that earned him a Screen Actors Guild card with a minor role in the 1991 film My Own Private Idaho. He then moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting. He would have given up his acting role if not for a phone call from Terrence Malick, who voiced and directed him in the World War II film. The Thin Red Line (1998) which became his breakthrough.
Jim went ahead to appear in other notable films which include GI Jane (1997), Ride with the Devil (1999) which is an American Civil War film, Count of Monte Cristo (2002), Serious Crimes (2002). He would later portray the role of Jesus Christ in Mel Gibson’s 2004 film The Passion of the Christ. He claimed that his role in the film put a damper on his acting career, as leading roles are not appeared after this role. Adding that Gibson had warned him against taking the role stating that he would never work in Hollywood again, to which he replied that we should all kiss our crosses.
Jim is a man who maintains his faith and respects his wife on screen and anywhere. He does not compromise with principles and does not play love roles with nude scenes. One instance was when he refused to do romance scenes with his on-screen wife, Ashley Judd, in High Crimes because it conflicted with his strong Catholic religion. And in Angel Eyes, Jim also refused to do a love scene with Jennifer Lopez because she was naked.
In 2006, Caviezel enrolled in at least one class as a part-time student at the University of Notre Dame.
