Father Don Woznicki is doing something right. As he gave his homily at the April 5 Sunrise Easter Mass at St. Bruno Church in Whittier, California, near Los Angeles, this happened … No matter our anguish, struggles or troubles, He is always with us. And since Father Woznicki is involved with promoting the cause of the Church in Hollywood, I hope this bodes well for our ability to take our rightful place in the culture, as witnesses to Truth, Beauty and... Read more
Among a lot of non-Catholic Christians, Mary pops up at Christmas, then is at the foot of the Cross, then pretty much disappears from the conversation. Not so in NBC’s ‘A.D.: The Bible Continues,” which premieres tonight, Easter Sunday, April 5. She won’t be around for the whole thing, but she has a vital part to play after the Crucifixion. From my other home, Catholic Vote: Italian-Australian actress Greta Scacchi plays the Virgin Mary (seen at top with Babou Ceesay,... Read more
In part one of this interview — click here for that — conducted in a quiet corner of a party at a press event in January in Pasadena, California, Argentinean actor Juan Pablo Di Pace discussed the inner process of playing Jesus in the 12-episode series “A.D.: The Bible Continues” (premiering Easter Sunday, April 5 on NBC at 9 p.m. ET/PT), and the role his mother played in that … including attending the shooting of the Crucifixion. Here, Di Pace... Read more
“It’s very different than anything else I’ve done,” said Argentinean actor Juan Pablo Di Pace, who plays Jesus in the 12-episode NBC series “A.D.: The Bible Continues,” premiering Easter Sunday, April 5 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. “I was talking before about the simplicity of approaching it and stripping everything away, because you owe it to Him. That honesty has to be there. The openness, the way that He communicated these huge concepts in such a beautiful and simple way.” Produced... Read more
Back in January, when I was talking to “The Bible” producers and spouses Mark Burnett and Roma Downey about “A.D.: The Bible Continues” — click here for that — Burnett dropped a line that, when I was transcribing the interview recently, caught my attention. So, I emailed him to ask about this: The great thing would be, for “A.D.,” if it ran several years. It would really be great. I didn’t get an answer — and that often means that... Read more
Devout Catholic comic actor Kevin James can be seen on April 24 in the new faith-based feature film “Little Boy” — click here for my interview with producer Eduardo Verastegui about that — and you’ll soon be seeing him in a lot more. From The Hollywood Reporter: The King of Queens alum has inked a two-year first-look deal with the studio behind the CBS comedy, the studio announced Wednesday. Additionally, the comedian currently starring in the sequel to Paul Blart: Mall Cop on the big... Read more
Over at CatholicVote, I have part one of a conversation with Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, executive producers of NBC’s “A.D.: The Bible Continues,” premiering on Easter — Sunday, April 5 — at 9 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. One of their goals (achieved, at least in part, because it’s on NBC) is to bring Biblical stories into popular entertainment: After their huge personal promotional push for “The Bible,” which aired on History Channel at Eastertime in 2013, and then the... Read more
Boston native — and outspoken Catholic revert — Mark Wahlberg has a new project in the works on a subject that still an open wound in his hometown — the April 15, 2013, bombing near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. From Variety: Mark Wahlberg, Scott Stuber, Dylan Clark, Stephen Levinson and Michael Radutzky will produce “Patriots’ Day,” a movie chronicling the events of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, for CBS Films. No director or actor is attached yet, but a... Read more
Before he was a contestant on “American Idol,” Clark Beckham used to be a “busker,” a street singer, in Nashville, Tennessee. You’ve all seen them, those people, playing guitars or saxophones or something else, or just singing, with a hat or an instrument case or a basket in front of them, collecting tips from passers-by. I met Beckham at an “American Idol” party a couple of weeks ago — click here for that — and then we got on the phone on... Read more
On Wednesday, April 1, the remaining Top 9 performers from Season 14 of Fox’s “American Idol” once again jockey for votes and position, as they explore the songbook of Season One winner Kelly Clarkson. On Tuesday, I got on the phone for a second chat with the pride of White House, Tennessee, Clark Beckham — our first, in-person, conversation can be found here — and once again, we talked about the role faith plays in dealing with the pressure being... Read more
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