dramatic portrayals of jesus

Various authors and filmmakers have created dramatic portrayals of Jesus and his life. A number of storytellers have wanted to portray an accurate depiction of what his life is believed to have been like, while others have used the persona of Jesus as a narrative device to make a literary point and develop a story's theme. Because of the devotion of many people to the idea of Jesus, portrayals of him in works of fiction have been, almost without exception, fraught with controversy. Film portrayals of Jesus have, in particular, attracted protests and criticism. Filmmakers and theater managers have even received death threats in the wake of some of the more controversial movies about Jesus.

Novels portraying Jesus

According to Mary Magdalene by Marianne Fredriksson (2003)
Behold the Man by Michael Moorcock (1970)
Ben-Hur by Lew Wallace
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (1881)
The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by Jos Saramago (1991)
The Gospel of Corax by Paul Park
King Jesus by Robert Graves (1947)
by Christopher Moore (2001)
The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (1940, published in 1966)
Only Begotten Daughter and Godhead Trilogy by James Morrow
Judas, My Brother by Frank Yerby
Judas Iscariot by Leonid Andreev
The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas
The Big Fisherman by Lloyd C. Douglas
by Barry Sadler
The Urantia Book by William S. Sadler
The Gospel of Aphranius by Kiril Yeskov

Motion pictures portraying Jesus

Based on Biblical accounts

Il vangelo secondo Matteo (1964)
The Gospel of John (2003)
The Gospel Road (1967)
The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
Jesus (1979)
Jesus of Nazareth (1977) (TV miniseries)
King of Kings (1961; also a silent film version in 1927)
The Passion of the Christ (2004)

Other

Ben-Hur (a non-speaking role, seen only from behind or in partial view)
The Book of Life (1998)
Godspell (1973)
Hail Mary (1985) (modern-day retelling of the Virgin Birth)
Intolerance (1916)
Jesus Christ Superstar (1973; new video version of original musical in 1999)
Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter (2001) (direct-to-video http://www.filmthreat.com/Reviews.asp?Id=3134)
Johnny Got His Gun (1971), featuring Donald Sutherland as Jesus in a dream sequence
The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979)
The Robe (1953) (off-screen)
The Seventh Sign (1988)
Bad Lieutenant (1992)

Audio dramas portraying Jesus

The Man Born to be King (1941)
Adventures in Odyssey