Could Bible-Inspired 'Son Of God' Be Surprise Contender For Weekend Box Office?

'Son of God' sets itself a near-impossible task – making the story of the New Testament appealing to a new generation. A generation of people, who have smartphones, Google and gingerbread lattes – therein lies the issue. Producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey (behind History Channel's hit miniseries The Bible, which achieved record ratings last year) told USA Today that the challenge was in creating a gritty and realistic version of the story that would appeal to an over-stimulated audience.

"We've seen enough of those movies as kids — the 'donkeys and sandals' movies — that we wanted to create a cast of characters that felt gritty, realistic and authentic, and didn't look like they'd just stepped out of the dry cleaners," Downey says of the film, which features a mix of footage from The Bible and new material.

Watch the Son of God trailer here.

Click through to the next page for more on Son of God's audience and sales.

According to the producers, this is meant to be the first film to tell the entire story of Jesus (as told by the Bible) from birth up to resurrection - since The Greatest Story Ever Told in 1965. Whether or not that’s true, the film has already found its audience – the film had sold out entire theaters ahead of its premiere this Friday. As far as introducing the film to new demographics, Son of God’s appeal is questionable, but it’s clearly hitting its target demo.