The Young Messiah

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The Young Messiah

PG-13

2016

1h 51m

History

Drama

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50%

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38 Reviews

66%

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5,000+ Ratings

Mary (Sara Lazzaro), Joseph (Vincent Walsh) and 7-year-old Jesus (Adam Greaves-Neal) embark on a journey from Egypt to Nazareth after the young boy miraculously brings someone back to life. When King Herod (Jonathan Bailey) orders the death of the child, Roman centurion Severus (Sean Bean) starts to pursue the family across the desert. As Mary and Joseph worry about his safety, Jesus' natural curiosity allows him to understand more about the world and his remarkable powers.

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Roxana Hadadi

Chesapeake Family Magazine

Aug 2, 2016

2/5

The Young Messiah takes a different approach by focusing on a specific point in Jesus's childhood. But the faith-based film drags, and is mostly unremarkable.

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Christian Holub

Entertainment Weekly

Mar 14, 2016

C-

The Young Messiah struggles to hold its audience's attention.

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Andy Webster

New York Times

Mar 14, 2016

"The Young Messiah" performs no miracles.

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Sep 27, 2020

3.5/4.0

The Young Messiah will warm your heart and, in all likelihood, bring you to your knees.

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Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

Nov 5, 2019

[B]elievably stretching the imagination but finding that balance of history and theology that crosses the religious demographic lines, appealing to believers and non-believers alike, not to mention movie-goers who just want to see a well done film.

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Joanne Soh

The New Paper (Singapore)

Sep 20, 2017

1/5

It's a miracle it got made in the first place.

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Bradley B.

@album Jun 10, 2026

I found it quite moving to consider how that would have been.

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Susan H.

@susanparker Mar 8, 2026

Liked it not biblical but a sense of what Jesus might have been in his young life

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Steph H

@RT62740104 Jun 25, 2025

I mean I only really watched it for Jonathan Bailey and his character was my favourite thing about the movie

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Stephen C

@bob25009 May 27, 2025

1 hour and 51 minutes based on the Bible. Rated PG-13 for Thematic Elements and Some Violence!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Giordano B

@RT77789678 Nov 30, 2024

Bravo! Beautiful film. I also very much enjoyed the book by Anne Rice... brilliant!

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Justin W

@Loonsan Mar 13, 2022

Wow, really nice ancient setup, not much story over little Jesus's return so I appreciate it. Pretty good, just have an open-mindedness & you'll enjoy it. Epic quote: How do we explain God to his own son?

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Cyrus Nowrasteh

Director

Adam Greaves-Neal

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Synopsis

Mary (Sara Lazzaro), Joseph (Vincent Walsh) and 7-year-old Jesus (Adam Greaves-Neal) embark on a journey from Egypt to Nazareth after the young boy miraculously brings someone back to life. When King Herod (Jonathan Bailey) orders the death of the child, Roman centurion Severus (Sean Bean) starts to pursue the family across the desert. As Mary and Joseph worry about his safety, Jesus' natural curiosity allows him to understand more about the world and his remarkable powers.

Director: Cyrus Nowrasteh
Producer: Chris Columbus, Mark Radcliffe, Michael Barnathan, Tracy K. Price, Mark W. Shaw
Screenwriter: Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh, Cyrus Nowrasteh
Distributor: Focus Features
Production Co: 1492 Pictures, CJ Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Elements|Some Violence)
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 11, 2016, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 4, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $6.5M
Runtime: 1h 51m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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