Jesus a black man in biblical movie ‘Color of the Cross’

Why was Jesus persecuted and crucified?

Was it because Jewish leaders viewed him as a threat to their teachings, because the people rejected him as a false prophet or because the Romans considered him a political rebel?

Or was it because he was black?

Those are the questions at the heart of the new biblical movie “Color of the Cross,” which was released Tuesday on DVD (Fox, $27).

Written and directed by Jean Claude LaMarre (“Malcolm X”), who also stars, it’s the first Hollywood feature film to portray Jesus as a black man.

Producer Ken Halsband admits that some viewers might have trouble accepting the premise.

“When we were making this film and I would tell white people that we were doing this movie about a black Jesus, their first response was, “Oh, is it a comedy?’ ” says Halsband, who is Jewish.

Actually, “Color of the Cross” is a reverent, well-shot film that depicts the 48 hours before Jesus – “the dark-skinned Nazarene,” as one character puts it – was crucified.

“We followed the story of the Gospel,” says Halsband, who has made other faith-based films with LaMarre for BlackChristianMovies.com.

But the filmmakers did take artistic liberties by injecting race into the story as a possible factor in Jesus’ persecution. His disciples are depicted in skins of all shades, including a black Peter (a particularly memorable Jacinto Taras Riddick) and Judas (Johann John Jean).

To those who consider such a depiction of Jesus’ life as blasphemous, the producer reminds them that nobody knows what he looked like.

“It was more plausible that (Jesus) was black than he was blond-haired and blue-eyed,” says Halsband. “In that area of the world, people are olive-skinned and dark-skinned.

“To anyone who says, ‘Well, prove that he was black,’ we say, ‘Well, prove that he wasn’t.’ “