Review: Nicolas Cage Stars in 2014 'Left Behind' Movie, End of the World Film Official Trailer Released

By Lauren Leigh Noske
Left Behind Movie Starring Nicolas Cage
Left Behind Movie Starring Nicolas Cage

Stoney Lake Entertainment is remaking "Left Behind," a movie based on the Biblical prophecies of the rapture and the end of the world, to be released in fall of 2014. The film is action-packed and will star Nicolas Cage as Rayford Steele, Chad Michael Murray as Buck Williams, and Cassi Thomson as Cage's daughter.

Based on the New York Times best-selling series by Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye, "Left Behind" follows the lives of Captain Rayford Steele and journalist Buck Williams as they navigate a world heading for destruction and the imminent second coming of Christ after the sudden rapture of Christian believers. The series was originally adapted to film in the year 2000, and starred Christian actor Kirk Cameron.

The plot focuses on end-times and on the rapture, when all of those who trust in Jesus Christ for salvation will be caught up to be with Him in Heaven. In the film, Cage is flying a plane when several passengers disappear from their seats; his wife, played by Lea Thompson, is also raptured, leaving the unbelieving pilot and his daughter behind.

The movie assumes that the rapture will occur before the great tribulation; while this is but one of two mainstream views of when the rapture will occur, Christian scholars agree that Christ's second coming will culminate in the end of the world and the elimination of evil for eternity. "No matter who you are, no matter what you believe, one event will change the world. Are you ready?" the movie's trailer asks.

Producer Paul Lalonde told The Blaze that the new release will be quite different than the first film, since it will focus a lot more on the events following the rapture and on character development than the original movie did. Lalonde has always wanted to bring the Biblical prophecy of Christ's second coming to theatres, and hopes that Christian audiences will happily surprised. "I think they're going to be surprised at the clarity with which we presented the rapture," he says. The producer resisted accepting large offers from major Hollywood studios to make the film, and instead raised $16 million independently in order to have more control over production.

The trailer for "Left Behind" was published on May 30, and already has had over 1,000,000 views on YouTube. The film is expected to be released on October 3, 2014.

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