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.

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."

Cast

 * Fiona Palomo as Mary
 * Milo Manheim as Joseph
 * Lecrae as Gabriel
 * Joel Smallbone as Antipater
 * Antonio Banderas as King Herod
 * Antonio Cantos as Joachim
 * Moriah Peters as Deborah
 * Stephanie Gil as Rebekah
 * Rizwan Manji as Caspar
 * Geno Segers as Balthazar
 * Omid Djalili as Melchior

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 King Herod. Shooting locations included the Santa Bárbara Castle in Alicante.

Music
The following soundtrack was released on Nov 3, 2023. The deluxe version containing the original score was released on November 24, 2023.

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.

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

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. 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.

Critical response
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.