Who knew Paul Verhoeven was big into Jesus Christ? The ROBOCOP director is such a fan, in fact, that he even wrote a book on the man himself, ‘Jesus of Nazareth’. But Verhoeven’s take on Jesus is somewhat different that Christianity’s – his two-decade long research into Jesus’ history has led Verhoeven to make some relatively contentious claims. Not only does he reject the ‘miracles’ supposedly performed by the big man, Verhoeven also claims that the Holy Mother’s pregnancy was the product of being raped by a Roman soldier, not the immaculate conception (which does sound more plausible when you think about it).
Whilst Verhoeven discounts many of Christianity’s favourite Jesus stories, he also holds a lot of reverence for the religious figure too. ‘If you look at the man, it’s clear you have a person who was completely innovative in the field of ethics,’ states Verhoeven. ‘My own passion for Jesus came when I started to realize that. It’s not about miracles, it’s about a new set of ethics, an openness towards the world, which was anathema in a Roman-dominated world. I believe he was crucified because they felt that politically, he was a dangerous person whose following was getting bigger and bigger. Jesus’ ideals are about the utopia of human behavior, about how we should treat each other, how we should step into the shoes of our enemy.’
The big news, of course, is that Verhoeven is set to bring his version of Christ to the big screen in an adaptation of his own book. The script will be adapted by PULP FICTION co-writer Roger Avary, and will join a long list of controversial films about Christ.
Whilst Verhoeven doesn’t accept the possibility of ‘the resurrection’, THN is hoping his film will see Jesus brought back from the dead as a no-nonsense cyborg law enforcer, before swiftly heading to Mars for a war with some bugs, and then having it off with a stripper in a jacuzzi.
Source: Deadline
