PDL Begins?

This might sound incredible but the latest news is that we can expect to see "The Purpose Driven Movie" in the near future. According to this interview in Christianity Today, the movie is likely to come out soon via the production of Ralph Winter. Who is Ralph Winter? You might not know him but you know his work:

Ralph Winter is a towering, authoritative figure in stature and in reputation as a producer of Hollywood blockbusters. He's earned the attention and applause of audiences, actors, film crews, and film studios for producing such favorites as X-Men, X-2: X-Men United, the Planet of the Apes remake, and two of the most beloved Star Trek films (IV and VI). His latest production, Fantastic Four, opens in theaters next week, and he's now working on X-Men 3, coming next May. Winter also produced the Left Behind movie and an adaptation of Frank Peretti's The Visitation, due in September.

In the interview, Winter talks about the possible movie, saying:

CT: Since The Passion of The Christ, there's been so much press about how Hollywood "learned a lesson" about audiences and Christian-themed material. Do you think we really will see things change?
Winter: I think studios will say, "Oh, I think we can do this!" and try to unleash every cheesy little thing they can do. The TV show Revelations seems like a clear jump-on-the-bandwagon thing. The studios clearly see it as a marketing opportunity. That's why this Purpose-Driven Life project is so interesting.
CT: What The Purpose-Driven Life project? Are you making it into a movie?
Winter: Rupert Murdoch [of 20th Century Fox] comes to us and says, "Let's make it. I'll fund it."
CT: How are you going to turn this non-fiction, inspirational volume of life principles into a movie?
Winter: You've got to create a story. Think Grand Canyon—that's probably a good place to start. Find disparate stories that converge and illustrate [one or two of the] principles, find good characters. That's why I'm a fan of doing a small movie, getting a couple million dollars, and get out there and try an experiment, put our toe in the water with this. If [the first Purpose-Driven movie] works, well, you've got 39 films to make, or 12 more principles, or however many you want. There are some who are worried about getting a big theatrical release. But let's write the script first, and let's see what that tells us about how big or how small it will be.

Winter makes some very good points about Christian movies and art and other such topics. I recommend reading the entire interivew, available here.

However, I find it simply amazing that The Purpose-Driven Life will soon be on the big screen! If only Paul were alive today to capitalize on all his writings! Would you pay to go see "Shipwreck: Malta" or "Romancing Artemis' Silver"or "Star Wars: Herod vs. the Magi."