By Jesse Neo, PhDMay 10th, 2024
James Patrick Caviezel Jr.Â(born September 26, 1968) is an American actor. He playedÂJesusÂinÂThe Passion of the ChristÂ(2004) andÂThe Passion of the Christ: Resurrection - Chapter IÂ(2025),ÂTim BallardÂinÂSound of FreedomÂ(2023), and starred asÂJohn ReeseÂon the CBS seriesÂPerson of InterestÂ(2011-2016).Â
He appeared in G.I. Jane (1997), The Thin Red Line (1998), Frequency (2000), Angel Eyes (2001), and The Count of Monte Cristo (2002). Since 2021, Caviezel has openly supported parts of QAnon conspiracy theories.
Jim has won two Grace Awards at the MovieGuide Awards. He won for "The Passion of the Christ" in 2005 and for "Paul, Apostle of Christ" in 2009. His performance in "The Passion of the Christ" got him nominated for awards at the MTV Movie + TV Awards and the MTV Movie Awards, Mexico.
Caviezel received a Giffoni Award at the Giffoni Film Festival in 2007. In 1999, he won a Satellite Award with the actors from "The Thin Red Line." The Character and Morality in Entertainment Awards presented Jim and his co-stars from "I Am David" with a Camie Award in 2006.
Early life of James Caviezel
Caviezel was born in Mount Vernon, Washington. His mom was a homemaker and actress, and his dad was a chiropractor. He has a younger brother, Timothy, and three sisters, Ann, Amy, and Erin. He grew up in a close-knit Catholic family in Conway, Washington. His last name is Romansh. His dad is of Swiss and Slovak descent, while his mom is Irish.
Career of James Caviezel
Caviezel began acting in plays inÂSeattle, Washington. He earned hisÂScreen Actors GuildÂcard with a minor role in the 1991 filmÂMy Own Private Idaho. He then moved toÂLos AngelesÂto pursue a career in acting. When he decided to move, "people thought I was out of my mind," he said.ÂHe was offered a scholarship to study acting atÂNew York'sÂJuilliard SchoolÂin 1993, but he turned it down to portrayÂWarren EarpÂin the 1994 filmÂWyatt Earp.Â
He later showed up in episodes of "Murder, She Wrote" and "The Wonder Years." After his role in "G.I. Jane" (1997), he had a big performance in the 1998 Terrence Malick movie, "The Thin Red Line," which is set during World War II. He portrayed Black John, a rebel from Missouri, in "Ride with the Devil" (1999), a film about the American Civil War.
Caviezel was first chosen to play Scott Summers / Cyclops in X-Men (2000), but had to leave because of a scheduling conflict with the movie Frequency (2000). He acted in popular movies like Pay It Forward (2000), Angel Eyes (2001), The Count of Monte Cristo (2002), and Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004). In 2000, he had the main part in Madison, a movie about hydroplane racing in Madison, Indiana. The movie was finished in 2001, but wasn't shown in theaters until a limited release in 2005. In 2002, he played a significant role in the film I Am David.
Caviezel portrayedÂJesus ChristÂinÂMel Gibson's 2004ÂThe Passion of the Christ. During filming, he wasÂstruck by lightning, scourged by accident,ÂdislocatedÂhis shoulder, and suffered fromÂpneumoniaÂandÂhypothermia.Â
Prior to shooting the film, Gibson apparently told Caviezel that playing Jesus in his controversial movie might harm his career. In 2011, he mentioned that he had difficulty finding good roles since then, but playing Jesus in this movie was a unique experience. The Passion of the Christ made $612.1 million at the box office.
Caviezel had main parts in movies like "Unknown" and "Déjà Vu" in 2006. He acted as Kainan in "Outlander" in 2008 and voiced Jesus in the 2007 audio drama "The Word of Promise." In 2008, he was in "Long Weekend."
In 2009, Caviezel played French-Iranian journalistÂFreidoune SahebjamÂinÂThe Stoning of Soraya M., a drama set in 1986ÂIranÂabout the execution of a young mother. When asked about how his Catholic faith was affected by this story, he said, "You don't have to go any further than the gospels to figure out what the right thing to do is, whether you should be more concerned helping someone regardless of their religion or where they're from".Â
That year, he played Jesus again in the newest part of The Word of Promise. Caviezel acted in The Prisoner, a redo of the British sci-fi show with the same title, in November 2009.
Between 2011 and 2016, Caviezel was on a TV show called "Person of Interest" on CBS. He played a character named John Reese, who used to work for the CIA and now helps a rich person by fighting crime. The show had lots of viewers each week and got good ratings. Caviezel got nominated for a People's Choice Award in 2014 and 2016 for his acting on the show.
Caviezel was in the 2014 football movie "When the Game Stands Tall" as De La Salle High School coach Bob Ladouceur. The team had a 151-game winning streak from 1992 to 2003, a record in American sports. In 2013, he was in the movie "Escape Plan" as a warden in the world's most secret and secure prison.
Caviezel narrated two documentaries in 2016 about Christianity. One was on John Paul II and the fall of Communism, and the other was titled The Face of Mercy. In an interview about the first film, he mentioned that John Paul II defeated communism "with love".
In 2017, Caviezel agreed to be the main actor in CBS's show called SEAL Team. But before filming started, he left because of artistic disagreements, and David Boreanaz took over his role.
Caviezel acted as the character Luke in the movie Paul, Apostle of Christ, which was released in theaters on March 23, 2018, and received a variety of reviews.
In January 2018, Caviezel's agent said that he would play Jesus in The Passion of the Christ sequel called The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection with Gibson. In September 2020, Caviezel mentioned, "Mel Gibson just sent me the third picture, the third draft. It's coming." He also said, "It's going to be the biggest film in world history."
In 2018, Caviezel signed on to portrayÂTim Ballard, a DHS Agent and an anti-human-trafficking activist, in the filmÂSound of Freedom, about the organizationÂOperation Underground RailroadÂ(O.U.R.) and its mission to save children from sex trafficking and slavery. Ballard had specifically requested that Caviezel play him.Â
Caviezel said, "This is the second most important movie I've ever made, after The Passion of the Christ. ... It will help save many children and transform lives. It will also bring light to darkness." The movie came out in theaters on July 3, 2023.
Personal life of James Caviezel
In 1996, Caviezel got married to Kerri Browitt, who teaches English at a high school. They have taken in three kids from China.
Caviezel is a strong believer in the Catholic faith. In a 2017 interview, he discussed how important his faith is to him, how much The Passion of the Christ has influenced his life, and his deep devotion to the Virgin Mary. While filming The Passion of the Christ in Italy, he regularly met with a local Catholic priest for advice, confession, and Holy Communion, through an interpreter.
Political views of James Caviezel
Caviezel doesn't support abortion publicly. In 2006, he appeared in an ad with actress Patricia Heaton and Missouri athletes Kurt Warner and Mike Sweeney opposing Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2, which allowed embryonic stem cell research and therapy in Missouri legal under federal law.
He started the ad by saying, "Le-bar nash be-neshak" (Aramaic for "You betray the Son of Man with a kiss"), which refers to Judas betraying Jesus Christ in the Gospel According to St. Luke. Caviezel ended the ad by saying, "You know now. Don't do it. Vote no on 2." The ad was a reply to a commercial supporting embryonic stem cell research by Michael J. Fox.
Beginning in 2021, Caviezel endorsed elements of theÂQAnonÂconspiracy theory,Âfirst doing so during a remote appearance at the "Health and Freedom Conference"ÂatÂRhema Bible Training CollegeÂinÂBroken Arrow, Oklahoma. The appearance was to promote the filmÂSound of Freedom, centering on anti-human trafficking activistÂTim Ballard. Ballard's activism has been alleged to correspond to the rise of QAnon, though he denies any connection to the movement.Â
Caviezel mentioned that Ballard was supposed to be appearing at the conference but was "saving victims of trafficking" who were victims of "adrenochroming", a fictional practice whose existence is suggested by QAnon adherents.ÂCaviezel suggested he had seen evidence of children being subjected to the practice.ÂThe event included appearances by other QAnon promoters, such asÂL. Lin WoodÂandÂMichael Flynn.Â
In October of the same year, actor Caviezel spoke in Las Vegas at the "For God & Country: Patriot Double Down" conference. He talked about fighting against child sex trafficking, Satan, and liberal values. He said that "the storm is upon us", which is a slogan linked to QAnon and the idea of a final battle against evil. He also quoted the battle cry from the movie Braveheart, encouraging the audience to "[send] Lucifer and his henchmen straight back to hell where they belong."
After the release of "Sound of Freedom" in 2023, Caviezel kept talking about QAnon in interviews and media appearances about the movie. In July 2023, during an interview on "The Charlie Kirk Show," Kirk asked Caviezel about his support for QAnon.
He said he didn't know about QAnon when they made the movie in 2018. Later, he supported QAnon followers, saying they were unfairly treated. He likened them to Christians in the bible. Caviezel also talked more about adrenochrome and mentioned that "QAnon" is not real, only "Q" and "anons." This is a point often used by QAnon supporters to avoid admitting they support the movement.
Net worth of James Caviezel
James "Jim" Caviezel, an American actor, is worth $15 million. He is famous for playing Jesus Christ in the film "The Passion of the Christ" (2004), directed by Mel Gibson, which made $622.3 million. Jim also acted in the CBS show "Person of Interest" from 2011 to 2016, earning about $125,000 for each episode, totaling around $3 million per season.
Jim started acting in Seattle on stage, then appeared in the movie "My Own Private Idaho" in 1991, which was partly filmed in Seattle and Portland. He moved to Los Angeles and in 1992, he had a role on ABC's "The Wonder Years" and was in the film "Diggstown".
In 1993, Caviezel said no to a scholarship at Juilliard School in New York to work on the movie "Wyatt Earp" (1994) where he played Warren Earp, Wyatt's younger brother. Jim made appearances on a CBS crime show "Murder, She Wrote" and acted alongside Sidney Poitier and Farrah Fawcett in the CBS Western miniseries "Children of the Dust" in 1995.
The next year, he was in the baseball movie "Ed" and acted as an FA-18 pilot in the exciting movie "The Rock," which made $335.1 million in theaters. Caviezel wrapped up the 1990s with parts in "G.I. Jane" (1997), "The Thin Red Line" (1998), and "Ride with the Devil" (1999); his role in "The Thin Red Line" got him nominated for a Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor.
Jim was in several hit movies in the early 2000s like "Frequency" (2000), "Pay It Forward" (2000), and "The Count of Monte Cristo" (2002). He got the role of Cyclops/Scott Summers in the 2000 movie "X-Men," but had to quit due to filming "Frequency."
In 2003, Caviezel was chosen to play Jesus Christ in "The Passion of the Christ." While filming the movie, he faced many challenges like getting hypothermia, pneumonia, dislocating his shoulder, suffering a 14-inch back cut from a whip, and being struck by lightning twice. In 2018, Jim shared with the "Catholic Courier" that his hardships during filming led to two heart surgeries. He will be playing Jesus again in the new movie, "The Resurrection of the Christ."
After surviving a challenging film project, Caviezel went on to act in movies like "Unknown" and "Déjà Vu" in 2006, and "Outlander," "Long Weekend," and "The Stoning of Soraya M" in 2008. He also starred in the miniseries "The Prisoner" in 2009 and made a TV comeback in 2011, playing the character John Reese on all 103 episodes of "Person of Interest". Caviezel's performance in the show even earned him nominations for People's Choice Awards in 2014 and 2016.
While on the TV show "Person of Interest," Caviezel got the main part in the action movie "Transit." He also acted alongside Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger in "Escape Plan" (2013). In addition, he starred in the historical drama "Savannah" (2013) and portrayed real-life football coach Bob Ladouceur in "When the Game Stands Tall" (2014). In 2016, Jim narrated the religious documentaries "The Face of Mercy" and "Liberating a Continent: John Paul II and the Fall of Communism".
The next year, Jim was chosen as the main actor on CBS show "SEAL Team" but left the project due to differences in vision; David Boreanaz then took his place. In 2017, Caviezel was in the movie "The Ballad of Lefty Brown" and played the lead in "Paul, Apostle of Christ" in 2018. In the same year, he acted as a doctor in "Running for Grace" and narrated "Onyx, Kings of the Grail". Jim starred in the action movie "Infidel" in 2019, and he portrayed former CIA agent Tim Ballard in "Sound of Freedom," a movie based on real events set to be released in 2020.
