‘Passion of the Christ’ coming out on DVD in August

Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” will be released on DVD on Aug. 31 through 20th Century Fox.

Gibson couldn’t persuade any of the major Hollywood studios, including Fox, to distribute the movie, which was released Feb. 25. But it became the year’s biggest blockbuster so far, earning a place among the top 10 highest-grossing movies of all time with more than $368 million at the North American box office.

Although Fox passed on the theatrical distribution of the film, the studio exercised its “first look deal” with Gibson’s Icon Productions that put it at the head of the line among those who wanted to distribute the DVD.

Filmed in Aramaic and Latin, the movie will be presented with English subtitles on VHS and English and Spanish subtitles on DVD. A Fox spokesman said there will not be any extra features, but that those may be included in a future edition.