Fatherhood drama ‘Courageous’ to arrive in theaters Sept. 30

Courageous, the widely anticipated follow-up from the makers of the hit movie Fireproof, will release in theaters nationwide Sept. 30.

The Sherwood Pictures film will debut on around 800 screens on the same opening weekend as 2008’s Fireproof—whose DVD release and associated books were huge best-sellers—and its 2006 predecessor, Facing the Giants.

“It’s a good weekend for the faith-based audience because churches have been back in session long enough to rally around the film opening and it’s good time of the year for the booksellers to be involved,” Kris Fuhr, vice president at Provident Films, co-producers with Sony Pictures’ Affirm Films division, told Christian Retailing.

While previous Sherwood films have been distributed to theaters by Samuel Goldwyn Films, Courageous will be handled by TriStar Pictures. “A decision was made that the brand of Sherwood Pictures is strong enough now that it has a place with the Sony releasing organization,” Fuhr said.

The opening has been scheduled to avoid competition from summer blockbuster releases and ensure long theatrical runs. “We looked very closely at how previous movies did,” said Fuhr. “Six weeks after opening, Fireproof was still showing in 85% of theaters.” 

As with Fireproof, communities where a theater run is not planned will be able to bring the movie to the area by forming an action club and guaranteeing 1,000 ticket sales, she added.

A rough cut of Courageous, which addresses fatherhood through the lives of four police officers, has been completed and is being shown to groups of church leaders. Advance screenings have also been planned for retailers, with January showings at the Munce Group’s Christian Products Expo (CPE) in Hershey, Pa., and The Gathering in Hilton Head., S.C., the annual church music leadership conference organized by Christian Supply in Spartanburg, S.C.

Meanwhile, another faith-based film addressing issues of fatherhood is in production by Downes Brothers Entertainment (DBE). A Vietnam-themed drama, To The Wall stars Stephen Baldwin and Rebecca St. James. The cast also includes Kevin Downes—one of the lead actors in Courageous and producer of To The Wall with brother Bobby.

The pair saw their adaptation of Karen Kingsbury’s Like Dandelion Dust (Center Street) release on DVD last month after taking in $360,000 at the U.S. domestic box office on its theatrical release last year. 

The release of the DVD—which includes a documentary telling the story of Kingsbury’s adoption of three boys from Haiti—was to be supported by a series of church-based screenings. 

The Grace Card, a police drama starring Academy Award winner Louis Gossett, was also to be shown last month at Munce Group’s CPE, ahead of a Feb. 25 theatrical release.