RANDALL WALLACE SAYS MEL GIBSON WARNED 'SATAN'S GOING TO COME AFTER YOU' BEFORE WRITING THE RESURRECTION OF THE CHRIST. (PHOTO).

 Randall Wallace says Mel Gibson warned 'Satan's going to come after you' before writing The Resurrection of the Christ

Screenwriter Randall Wallace has revealed that Mel Gibson warned him about potential spiritual challenges before the pair began writing The Resurrection of the Christ, the sequel to The Passion of the Christ.

Speaking on Raymond Arroyo's Arroyo Grande podcast, Wallace said he was the one who first suggested making a film focused on the resurrection of Jesus while he and Gibson were promoting Hacksaw Ridge in 2016.

“Mel didn't approach me. I approached him, actually,” Wallace said.

According to Wallace, Gibson had already spent years thinking about telling the Resurrection story. He noted that the original cut of The Passion of the Christ did not include the resurrection scene that was eventually added at the end of the film after audience feedback.

Wallace said he encouraged Gibson to expand that part of the story into a full-length feature.

“Having studied the Resurrection and being so consumed by it, I thought about it many times,” Wallace said. “When we were promoting Hacksaw Ridge, we were sitting there talking about our lives, and I said, ‘Look, you know, the story that you really need to tell is the Resurrection.’”

He recalled that Gibson paused before responding and said the project should be driven by its purpose rather than financial or personal motivations.

“He said, ‘If we do this, it can't be for the money, and it can't be to get back at people that have hated us or wronged us or been unhappy with us,’” Wallace said.

Wallace said he agreed with Gibson before the director added another warning.

“Then he said, ‘You know, Satan's going to come after you,’” Wallace recalled.

Wallace responded with a joke during the conversation.

“I said, ‘Well, you know, Satan doesn't really care about Baptists.’ It's really good when Satan can get a Catholic. We're a dime a dozen,” he said, describing the comment as facetious.

Wallace co-wrote The Resurrection of the Christ with Gibson and Gibson's brother, Donal Gibson. 

The trio previously collaborated on the screenplay after working together on several projects over the years, including Braveheart, We Were Soldiers and Hacksaw Ridge.