D.J. Caruso, the filmmaker behind movies like Disturbia, Eagle Eye and xXx: The Return of Xander Cage, will handle a big budget adaptation of Redeeming Love, Francine Rivers’ bestselling Christian novel. The movie is set to hit theaters in 2022 and will star Abigail Cowen (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Logan Marshall-Green (Spider-Man: Homecoming), Famke Janssen (Jean Grey in the X-Men movies) and Nina Dobrev (The Vampire Diaries).
Redeeming Love is a loose (very loose) adaptation of the Book of Hosea, set against the backdrop of the California Gold Rush. A woman sold into sex work against her will falls finds herself being courted by a kindly farmer named Michael Hosea. Though she’s not particularly into the arrangement at first, readers familiar with the biblical story of Hosea can probably see where this one is going.
The book was a huge success when it was published in 1991, selling over three million copies. Rivers herself spent years as a successful writer of historical romance novels before becoming a Christian in 1986. She blended her familiarity with the romance genre and her new interest in the biblical narrative to tell a fresh story that works on both a romantic level and a spiritual one. And while Hollywood hasn’t exactly shown the same interest in sweeping romantic epics that it did back in the Titanic days, it might be time for a revival.
“After many years of dreaming about this, followed by years of work alongside D.J., we can’t wait to see the story come to the big screen next year,” Rivers told Variety.
“I am excited for fans of the book and even for those who haven’t read it, that they will be able to experience Angel’s journey up on the big screen where it belongs,” Caruso agreed. “Every actor and crew member felt the significance of the story we were telling, and it enhanced and elevated the film in a profound way.”
There’s no trailer yet, but the movie did drop a brief behind the scenes look.
