Journey to Bethlehem

Journey to Bethlehem is a 2023 American Christian musical film directed by Adam Anders in his feature-length directorial debut. Written by Anders and Peter Barsocchini, the film stars Milo Manheim and Fiona Palomo as Joseph and Mary, with Antonio Banderas as King Herod.

Journey to Bethlehem
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Adam Anders
Written by	Adam Anders Peter Barsocchini
Produced by	Adam Anders Brandt Andersen Steve Barnett Ryan Busse Stephen Meinen Alan Powell
Starring	Fiona Palomo Milo Manheim Lecrae Joel Smallbone Antonio Banderas
Cinematography	Xavi Giménez
Edited by	Sabrina Plisco
Music by	Adam Anders Nikki Anders Peer Åström
Production company	Affirm Films Monarch Media SPACE + ART Entertainment Night Light
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Releasing
Release date	November 10, 2023 (2023-11-10) (United States)
Running time	98 minutes[1]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$6 million[2]
Box office	$7.9 million[3][4]

Premise

A young woman carrying an unimaginable responsibility. A young man torn between love and honor. A jealous king who will stop at nothing to keep his crown. This live-action Christmas musical celebration for the entire family, weaves classic Christmas melodies in to new pop songs in a music-infused retelling of the timeless story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus.^[5]

Cast

• Fiona Palomo as Mary
• Milo Manheim as Joseph
• Lecrae as Gabriel
• Joel Smallbone as Antipater
• Antonio Banderas as Herod the Great
• Antonio Cantos as Joachim (father of Mary)
• Maria Pau Pigem as Anne (mother of Mary)
• Moriah Peters as Deborah
• Stephanie Gil [es] as Rebekah
• Rizwan Manji as Caspar
• Geno Segers as Balthazar
• Omid Djalili as Melchior
• Antonio Gil as Jacob (father of Joseph)
• Alicia Borrachero as Rachel (mother of Joseph)

Production

The film and its cast was announced in March 2023, with newcomer Fiona Palomo as Mary, Zombies star Milo Manheim as Joseph, and Antonio Banderas as Herod the Great.^[5][6] Shooting locations included the Santa Bárbara Castle in Alicante.^[7]

Music

The following soundtrack was released on Nov 3, 2023.^[8] The deluxe version containing the original score was released on November 24, 2023. Meanwhile, the soundtrack album edition with instrumental music was released one year later on November 29, 2024.^[9]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"	0:18
2.	"Journey to Bethehem"	1:47
3.	"Mary's Getting Married"	3:34
4.	"Good to be King"	2:57
5.	"Can We Make This Work"	2:46
6.	"Mother To A Savior and King"	3:54
7.	"The Ultimate Deception"	2:55
8.	"Three Wise Guys"	2:34
9.	"We Become We"	2:08
10.	"In My Blood"	2:54
11.	"The Nativity Song"	4:04
12.	"Brand New Life"	3:27
Total length:		33:24

Release

Journey to Bethlehem was theatrically released on November 10, 2023, by Sony Pictures and Affirm Films. A teaser trailer premiered in front of Affirm's Big George Foreman, before being released on YouTube.^[10]

The film was released on digital platforms on December 8, 2023, followed by a Blu-ray and DVD release on January 16, 2024.^[11]

Reception

Box office

In the United States and Canada, Journey to Bethlehem was released alongside The Marvels, and was projected to gross $1–3 million from 1,823 theaters in its opening weekend.^[12] The film made $1 million on its first day, including $250,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $2.4 million, finishing in seventh.^[2]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 75% of 24 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "Journey to Bethlehem adds a solidly traditional and surprisingly fun – albeit occasionally treacly – entry to the lengthy list of Nativity films."^[13] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it an 81% positive score.^[2] In 2024, it was awarded the Epiphany Prize® for Inspiring Movies by Movieguide at the Movieguide Awards.^[14]