( CNN ) It 's one of the most famous faces in history , even though no one really knows what he looked like . Instead , every culture , every generation , remakes Jesus in its own image . A blonde-haired , blue-eyed savior when America was mostly Anglo-Protestant , at least in Hollywood 's eyes . An androgynous , meek-and-mild messiah during the anything-goes 1970s . A studly action-figure hero after the attacks of September 11 , 2001 . Flip through the gallery above , and you 'll see what I mean . If you turned on the television this past Sunday , though , a new vision of Jesus came into view . Darker , in mood and skin tone . Earthy rather than ethereal . If not following all of history 's clues -- Hollywood has yet to cast an actual Jew as Jesus -- then at least inching closer . Flipping through the channels on a day millions of Western Christians celebrated the resurrection of their savior , viewers could choose from `` Killing Jesus , '' a NatGeo production rebroadcast Sunday on Fox . `` A.D. , '' NBC 's sequel to the blockbuster miniseries `` The Bible , '' and `` Finding Jesus , '' CNN 's addition to the ever-burgeoning body of Christ-centered TV fare . Does God have a prayer in Hollywood ? What unites these disparate projects , besides a recognition that Jesus always draws an audience and the Good Book is good for business , is the type of men chosen to play Christ . They are brawny , with brown eyes and dark complexions . They look like men who could be carpenters , if not in Nazareth , than at least in the Mediterranean neighborhood . Haaz Sleiman , from `` Killing Jesus , '' was born and raised in Lebanon . He 's also Muslim , a fact that annoyed some Christians , who took to Twitter to voice their displeasure . Adam Bond , a British actor of mixed heritage , including Native American , portrays Jesus during the historical reenactments in `` Finding Jesus . '' And Juan Pablo Di Pace -- a Argentinian named after the late St. Pope John Paul II -- takes a starring role in `` A.D. , '' replacing Diogo Morgado , dubbed `` hot Jesus , '' by some , `` smarmy Jesus '' by others . You could make the case that authenticity is the coin of our current entertainment realm , and that filmmakers are competing to make their work as historically accurate as possible . Contemporary viewers are too savvy to stomach the fake beards and odd accents that littered the camels-and-sandals epics of eras past . But there 's another , deeper meaning behind our new , multicultural Jesuses , scholars say . `` Filmmakers and networks are in touch with the fact that the complexion of America has changed , '' said Stephenson Humphries-Brooks , a religion scholar and author of `` Cinematic Savior : Hollywood 's Making of the American Christ . '' `` A large number of Americans are people of color : Latinos and Middle Easterners and people from India , '' Humphries-Books continued . `` That means the audience base is shifting in various and important ways . '' The audience base may be shifting , but it 's also tuning in . Each of the Jesus shows drew big ratings , which means you 'll likely be seeing more of Christ as you channel surf . But according to the Apostle Paul , almost every depiction of Jesus so far has gotten at least one detail wrong : his flowing locks . Real men do n't wear long hair , said the New Testament scribe .
If you turned on the television this past Sunday , a new vision of Jesus came into view . He was not just an ordinary man who lived in Nazareth and died at age 40 ; he was also God's son ( John 1:1-11 ). Earthy rather than ethereal . According to the Apostle Paul , almost every depiction of Jesus so far has gotten at least one detail wrong .