When people talk about the biggest movies ever, you expect names like Titanic (1997) or the 2009 Avatar. But there’s another film that quietly claims this crown, the Jesus (1979) film by Australian director Peter Sykes.
This isn’t just another church film. It’s the most translated movie in history. With roughly 7,100 to 7,164 languages spoken in the world today, the Jesus film is reported to be available in over 2,200 languages as of August 2025.
I grew up watching this movie countless times, especially during the Christmas season. As a child, I remember how, on certain occasions, the Luganda translation would be shown after church services and crusades. The Jesus (1979) film was often shown alongside the graphically violent and emotionally intense The Passion of the Christ (2004), another Jesus-film by Mel Gibson that’s mainly centred on the suffering and crucifixion. And, oh, it’s Jim Caviezel, the actor who plays Jesus in this film, who once said he thought about suing people for being called Jesus😂. Taken as a pair, these two films felt like a complete picture of the story of Christ.
In school dormitories, classmates would share how they also watched the Jesus (1979) film in their hometowns, some in Lusoga, Swahili, Lusamia, Luhya, Jaluo, Rutooro, and some northern Ugandan dialects. Same story, different voices.
Strangely, I recently noticed the Jesus film doesn’t roll any production and cast credits. Producer John Hayman explained that the filmmakers saw themselves as ‘translators’ of the Gospel of Luke, not as stars, a humility that didn’t stop the film from flopping when it premiered in 1979, leaving the sponsoring organisation about $4 million in debt.
But here’s where it gets interesting. Undeterred by early setbacks, the evangelical organisation behind the film further took a bigger risk. In the same year the film premiered, shortly after three years of production, translation of the Jesus film began. Dr. Bill Bright, founder of the then-financially struggling Campus Crusade for Christ (now Cru), set a goal to translate and dub the film into as many languages as possible, with an initial target of 163 languages covering Asia and the Americas, allowing even illiterate audiences to experience it.
By the end of 1980, the Jesus Film Project had translated the movie into at least 30 languages, including major ones like Hindi—which alone was viewed by more than 21 million people in India— and the Tagalog version, which was actively shown in the Philippines. By this time, another 29 languages with at least 1 million speakers had been recorded and mixed.
In 1981, the organisation formally established the Jesus Film Project ministry to better coordinate global outreach using the film and related media. Since then, and backed by over 1,500 Christian agencies, dedicated translation teams travel worldwide, working with native speakers to carefully translate, record, and review each version to ensure the story truly resonates in every ‘heart language.’
An interesting remark on the Jesus Film Project Wikipedia page puts it this way: “Not everyone can or will read the Bible. Jesus Film Project believes that film is the most powerful medium for sharing the story of Jesus, allowing everyone to hear Him speak in their language and witness His love unfold on screen.”
From remote villages to massive stadiums, the Jesus film has since been screened in at least 229 countries and translated into over 2,200 languages, according to the 2024 JFP highlights, excluding numerous unofficial voice-over translations circulating in communities without large screens. Now, here’s the catch: Do those figures mean the Jesus film holds the title of the most-watched movie of all time?
According to the 2020 official statement from the Jesus Film Project, as of May 2020, the film had been viewed more than 8 billion times by over 4 billion people. If that’s true, then surely the Jesus film is the most-watched movie of all time. These numbers, however, have been met with criticism. Evangelical leader Vinay Samuel, for instance, expressed scepticism, arguing that the figures are “not gathered in a social scientific way,” and pointing out that no one really knows how many people actually watched each showing.
That aside, no other film has ever been pushed this aggressively into every corner of the globe. Recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the ‘Most Translated Film,’ the 1979 Jesus film (also called The Jesus Film) has been referred to by the BBC and The New York Times as the ‘most-watched motion picture of all time.’
Whether you take the viewing figures literally or not, one thing is undeniable: Jesus (1979) has reached audiences most Hollywood studios can only dream of. A film that once flopped at the cinema went on to become one of the most widely shown stories in human history. And here’s the Kicker: while we argue about numbers, villagers in remote parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America are still gathering to watch it today.
Beyond screenings, the Jesus Film Project has also contributed to planting 132,997 churches worldwide, further proving how the film’s influence extends far beyond the screen. I’m curious to know the language in which you first watched the Jesus film? Answers in the comments below!
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