Associate Professor of Religious Studies Steve Humphries-Brooks was interviewed for a CNN.com article about a new film, "Color of the Cross," in which Jesus is portrayed as a black man. Humphries-Brooks, an expert on portrayals of Jesus in film, said "Universally in American film up until now Jesus has been a white male. For the first time you have a depiction of Jesus in the hands of an African American director and an African American cast that says what their particular community's understanding of Jesus is."
Humphries-Brooks, author of Cinematic Savior: Hollywood's Making of the American Christ, noted, "In my reading, every Jesus film has been about the current moment. Film is primarily a medium of communication between a contemporary director and a contemporary audience. There's never been an authentic, historically accurate Jesus put on film. Will there ever be? We shouldn't expect it."
