When it was first announced that Nicolas Cage would be playing Joseph in a bizarre horror movie about the life of Jesus, we were kind of like, “You know what? Hell yeah.” After all, this is the Nicolas Cage we’re talking about, and he can make anything good to watch, right? Well, apparently not, as The Carpenter’s Son has debuted with a disastrous Rotten Tomatoes score of just 30%, signifying that even with the presence of one of the greatest character actors of this generation, the film is a major misfire.
Of course, it’s still early and things could change, but with 10 critical reviews so far, it’s not looking good for The Carpenter’s Son, which also stars FKA Twigs, Noah Jupe and Souheila Yacoub. Called “a visually stylish and gory, but clunky and heavy-handed psychological horror thriller that’s low on scares, suspense and intrigue,” by Avi Offer from NYC Movie Guru, Jacob Oller from AV Club adds:
“It takes dedication to make a dull movie where Nicolas Cage plays Joseph and Jesus gets into a fistfight with Satan, but The Carpenter’s Son sets to its task with devotion, if little else.”
Things don’t get much better from there, as Sean Boelman from FandomWire says The Carpenter’s Son isn’t a bad movie “because of blasphemy or historical inaccuracy,” but “simply because it feels like you are watching paint dry for an hour and a half.” Ouch! “One sees the appeal and admires the craziness The Carpenter’s Son tediously arrives at, but Sunday school is more compelling than the journey there,” adds Robert Kojder from Flickering Myth.
What is ‘The Carpenter’s Son’ About?
First announced in May 2024, filming on The Carpenter’s Son got underway in August and finished later in the year. During the production, Cage was attacked by a swarm of bees that were perhaps pissed off that the movie is loosely inspired by the apocryphal text the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which is a non‐canonical account of the early life of Jesus Christ. It’s set in Roman-occupied Egypt, and sees Cage and Twigs play the parents of a young boy (Jupe) who begins to exhibit mysterious, supernatural powers that his father desperately tries to keep secret.
Living in hiding after fleeing their homeland, the child struggles to understand who he really is and what his powers mean when he encounters another strange young boy who fills him with doubt and rebellion. Rather than just shouting, “Get thee behind me, Satan!” The Carpenter’s Son instead descends into a psychological and supernatural horror story, as divine forces and dark powers collide, thus testing the limits of faith, family, and destiny.
On paper, it definitely sounds like an interesting watch, even if you’re not into all that religious stuff, but, sadly, it appears as if The Carpenter’s Son is more sizzle than steak based on the above comments. While it does have three positive reviews that champion the film’s performances and creepy atmosphere, the bad clearly outweighs the good here.
You can make up your own mind about the movie when The Carpenter’s Son opens on November 14, 2025, from Magnolia Pictures.
Release Date
October 30, 2025
Director
Lotfy Nathan
Writers
Lotfy Nathan
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Kaiti Manolidaki
Leper Woman
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