What would Jesus do?

This is an actual breakdown (please do not send me submissions as I am not the CD).

[JESUS] 30 to 33 years old, a rabbi in First Century Palestine, Jesus is an itinerant preacher whose teachings and parables win Him an enthusiastic group of followers. After performing miracles in public, His fame spreads, and He becomes targeted by the Pharisees, who regard Him as a blasphemer. Jesus gradually reveals the central truth of His existence: He is the literal Son Of God. Now regarded as a deadly nemesis by Caiaphas, Jesus enters Jerusalem to great acclaim, only to be betrayed by Judas and condemned for blasphemy and treason by the Sanhedrin. Sentenced to death by a reluctant Pilate, Jesus is crucified, only to return to life after three days in the tomb. Seen regularly by His disciples in the weeks following, Jesus ascends to Heaven in their presence, and His life inspires the spread of the Christian faith…LEAD

Sometimes, depending on the company I am casting for, the legal department reviews the breakdowns and makes sure that the company is not violating any employment laws when sending out a breakdown. So if the company is sensitive to this issue the breakdown could have started out like this:

“[JESUS] An actor (or actress) to play the role of a 30 to 33 year old, etc, etc…”

And ended like this:

“Please submit all genders, races, ethnicities, etc, etc…”

I think casting directors are very sensitive to race and gender issues because we are the first creative eyes to look at a script objectively and question if a role has to be a Caucasian male? With every script I cast, I am looking for opportunities to open up the director’s eyes to talent that he or she may not have thought of, I consider it part of my job.

So, if I were casting Jesus, I would have to say that I don’t know who I would cast, but I know one thing, I would love to see those casting lists!