'Jesus Revolution' Astounds Entertainment Industry, Places Third at Box Office

The new faith-based film Jesus Revolution opened big this past weekend, finishing at number 3 at the box office. 

It brought in an estimated $15.5 million. This was more than double the original estimate of between $6 million - $7 million. 

As CBN News reported, the film tells the true story behind the Jesus Movement of the 1970s, including how Pastor Chuck Smith welcomed hippies looking for truth at his church. It gave birth to one of the greatest spiritual awakenings in American history. 

Despite mixed critical reviews, the film has a remarkable 99% audience rating on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes (as compared to the 53% critics' score). Additionally, Jesus Revolution has earned a rare A+ CinemaScore from opening day audiences, according to Collider.com.

The movie is based on Pastor Greg Laurie's book, Jesus Revolution, which outlines "the true story of the national spiritual awakening in the early 1970s and its origins within a community of teenage hippies in Southern California."

After being saved, Laurie would later start Harvest Christian Fellowship, in Riverside, California, which is now one of the largest churches in the country. The church has sponsored its local SoCal Harvest event for three decades, making it one of the longest-running evangelistic events in the nation, attended by millions of people.

The film's cast includes Kelsey Grammer who portrays Chuck Smith. Grammer, 67, is a Christian. He's well known for the character of Frasier Crane whom he played for 20 years in the television series Frasier and Cheers.

Jesus Revolution is a Kingdom Story film in collaboration with Lionsgate. Filmmaker Jon Erwin of I Can Only Imagine and American Underdog directed the film. 

Other members of the cast include The Chosen's Jonathan Roumie, Joel Courtney, Anna Grace Barlow, and Kimberly Williams-Paisley.

Watch Jesus Revolution's trailer below.

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