Stories about Paul Verhoeven (director of Robocop and Total Recall) and his desire to make a film about Jesus go so far back that I am not particularly optimistic this project will ever see the light of day. I first heard about it in the first edition of W. Barnes Tatums' "Jesus at the Movies" which was published almost ten years ago in 1997. However, Tyler Williams highlights an interview with Verhoeven at Empire. It seems he fears getting attacked by fundamentalists so much that he's decided to write a book on it first. There are a few points about this. Firstly, it seems unlikely anyone would actually shoot him (as his scriptwriter has actually told him). Secondly, if people are going to be offended by a film they probably will be by a book. Presumably he has never heard of the fatwa slapped on Salman Rushdie.Secondly, Peter Chattaway reports that the Vancouver Sun has indicated that Nativity producer Marty Bowen is now working on a film about John the Baptist. I can't imagine that would be very popular, even if Peter and I would both be keen to see it. Perhaps they should write it as a book first...
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