During The Filming Of The Passion Of The Christ, The Actor Who Played Jesus Was Struck By Lightning And Suffered From A Number Of Ailments

Actors are known for pouring their hearts and souls into their roles, but few do it as much as Jim Caviezel (literally).

The actor was struck by lightning twice while filming The Passion of the Christ, suffering multiple serious injuries on set.

While most of us would have given up on the 2004 film, Caviezel persevered despite getting a cease and desist letter from God.

One of the bolts also struck Jan Michelini, the film’s assistant director, while she and Caviezel were filming in Italy with Mel Gibson.

Though the BBC claimed that “neither of them was seriously injured,” we can not imagine getting struck by lightning being a pleasant experience.

It was the second time Caviezel was struck during the tough shoot, with the actor previously suffering a bolt from the blue in Matera, Italy, where he sustained light burns to his fingers while holding an umbrella.

Back in 2003, the actors and crew were recreating the Sermon on the Mount as recorded in the Bible.

However, as production continued, the worst was yet to come for The Thin Red Line star and devoted Catholic.

Because the film concentrates on the final 12 hours of Jesus’ life, the now 54-year-old was forced to carry the cross while he reenacted the religious figure’s crucifixion.

The grueling shoot took its toll on Caviezel, who dislocated his shoulder and suffered several cuts from the chains wrapped around him while hanging from the cross for weeks.

As if that was not awful enough, he suffered pneumonia and a lung infection as a result of being semi-nude for the scene, wearing nothing but a thin cloth draped over him.

He was even mistakenly whipped by a co-star, who was playing a Roman soldier, while carrying the cross, leaving him with a 14-inch cut in his back.

“It just extended over the board and hit me with such velocity that I could not breathe,” Caviezel explained to Today, adding, “It is like having the wind knocked out of you.” The searing is so intense that you can hardly breathe.

“I turned around and looked at the guy, and I tell you, I may be playing Jesus, but I felt like Satan at that moment,” he continued.

“A couple of expletives flew out of my mouth as I turned to face him.”

Despite his on-set experiences, Caviezel does not appear to have lost faith and is scheduled to feature in a sequel to The Passion of the Christ in 2024.

During The Filming Of The Passion Of The Christ, The Actor Who Played Jesus Was Struck By Lightning And Suffered From A Number Of Ailments

Actors are known for pouring their hearts and souls into their roles, but few do it as much as Jim Caviezel (literally).

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