Jim Caviezel may not be about to reprise his role in Mel Gibson’s Jesus sequel The Resurrection of the Christ, but he is about to switch up his role as the Messiah a role in the new action movie Archangel, which is now set with a release date of November 6, 2026, and will also star Olivia Thirlby, Garret Dillahunt, and Shea Whigham, with Will Eubank directing.
Back in July, it was reported that Caviezel was expected to star in the action thriller which centers on a former Green Beret, Henry “Fitz” Fitzgerald, who designs weapons for the U.S. military from his rural home in Wyoming. When corporate raiders exploit domain laws to seize the properties of local residents and water rights, Fitz brings his personal arsenal of prototype weapons to play.
Caviezel has had plenty of movie roles since he was given a huge career boost when appearing as Jesus Christ in Mel Gibson’s controversial 2004 record-breaking hit, The Passion of the Christ. After roles in Paul, Apostle of Christ, Person of Interest, and Wyatt Earp, Caviezel hit another run of headlines for playing Tim Ballard in Sound of Freedom, the sleeper independent hit based on the true story of a former government agent who attempts to rescue children from traffickers.
Caviezel was previously expected to be reprising his role as Jesus in Mel Gibson’s long-delayed follow-up to The Passion of the Christ, The Resurrection of the Christ, which is coming to cinemas in 2027 in two parts, and has just started filming in Italy with a whole new cast. It has not been confirmed exactly why Caviezel did not return, but it has been claimed that the cost of de-aging the original cast to make them look 20 years younger would have blown the budget, so a new cast has been brought in to continue the story of Jesus on the big screen.
‘Archangel’ Comes from ‘Land of Bad’ Director
Archangel was said to be gearing up to begin filming in August, under the direction of Will Eubank, who previously helmed the 2024 movie Land of Bad. The film starred Liam and Luke Hemsworth, Russell Crowe, Ricky Whittle, and Milo Ventimiglia and was released in February 2024 – the notorious “graveyard slot” for Hollywood movies. So it proved to be, as the movie’s limited release generated just $7 million, which did not cover its $20 million budget.
However, the film was a huge hit with those who did see it, scoring a massive 93% on the Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter, and gaining a lot of praise for its “edge of the seat” action sequences, along with “plenty of excitement and a good flow of action and suspense.” While the movie only scored 66% from critics, many have since agreed that Land of Bad is a movie that was not fully appreciated on its original release. It did, however, prove to be a huge hit when it began streaming on Netflix in June 2025.
With Eubank having proven his ability to please audiences, Archangel could be another blistering action movie about one man taking a stand against injustice that will pay off for action fans, whether that is on the big screen or subsequently on streaming.