Bulgarian actor Christo Jivkov dies at the age of 48 after a battle with lung cancer

Bulgarian actor Christo Jivkov has died at the age of 48.

The star – best known for his role as St. John in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ – died in Los Angeles after a long battle with lung cancer.

He also played Giovanni delle Bande Nere in Ermanno Olmi’s The Profession of Arms (2001).

Jivkov was an actor and producer born in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Shortly after graduating from the Bulgarian Film and Theater Academy, where he majored in film directing, he was cast in the lead role in The Profession of Arms.

Sad news: Bulgarian actor Christo Jivkov has died at the age of 48 (pictured in 2014)

Illness: The star – best known for his role as St John in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ – died in Los Angeles after a long battle with lung cancer

The film won the 2002 David di Donatello Awards with nine wins including Best Picture.

He then enjoyed a career in Italian cinema and television.

In 2004, Jivkov played John in Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, alongside Jim Caviezel and Monica Bellucci.

He was expected to be involved in the long-rumoured sequel, which was rumored to start filming soon in January.

Australian director and actor Mel, 67, has mentioned on numerous occasions that the second film, titled The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection, is in the works – but now reports indicate filming could finally begin in spring 2023.

According to Newsmax, Jim Caviezel will return as Jesus, while Mel will direct.

Passion Of The Christ grossed a whopping $612 million worldwide on a comparatively small budget of $30 million, making it the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time at the US box office.

While the film was undoubtedly a financial success, Mel and his crew have weathered their fair share of negative critical reviews.

Career: He also played Giovanni delle Bande Nere in Ermanno Olmi’s The Profession of Arms (2001).

Life: Shortly after graduating from the Bulgarian Film and Theater Academy, where he majored in film directing, he was cast in the lead role in The Profession of Arms

Role: He was expected to be involved in the long-rumoured sequel to ‘The Passion of the Christ’, which was rumored to start filming soon in January (pictured is director Mel Gibson)

Some critics criticized the film for its excessive use of violence, while others claimed that the film deviated too dramatically from the biblical story on which it was based.

The film was also criticized by some viewers for depicting anti-Semitic themes.

It’s unclear if the 2004 film’s original star Monica Bellucci, who portrayed Mary Magdalene, will return to her roles.

A film about the resurrection of Christ entitled Risen was released in February and grossed $46 million worldwide on a budget of $20 million.

In September 2016, Mel confirmed Work has begun on a sequel to his 2004 film.

He revealed that work on the blockbuster has already begun and that Braveheart screenwriter Randall Wallace has already signed on for the project.

“Of course it’s a huge undertaking, and you know, it’s not Passion 2. It’s called The Resurrection,” Mel said during an interview with Pastor Greg Laurie at SoCal’s Harvest Crusade in California.

“Obviously this is a very big issue and it needs to be addressed because we don’t want to just portray it – you know, read what happened,” he explained.

“But to read it, experience it, and probably explore deeper meanings of what it’s about, it’s going to take some work, and Randall Wallace is up to the task.”

“Not only is he a brilliant writer, he is also a great director. He directed We Were Soldiers and Heaven Is For Real and stuff. So he’s a good writer and director,” added Mel.

Randall Wallace has spoken out about his desire to be in a follow-up film to Passion Of The Christ, telling The Hollywood Reporter, “I’ve always wanted to tell this story. The passion is the beginning and there is much more to tell,” he said.

The writer said they were interested because of the huge demand from religious followers, which helped make the original the highest-grossing independent film of all time.

He said, “The evangelical community considers The Passion to be the greatest movie of all time in Hollywood, and they’ve kept telling us they believe a sequel will be even bigger.”

Since hitting the big time in 2004, Mel has gone through many life changes, including splitting from his ex-wife Robyn Moore, to whom he was married for thirty years and with whom he shared seven children.

Mel was previously in a relationship with Russian musician Oksana Grigorieva from 2009 to 2010, with whom he shares his daughter Lucia, 13.

He then met his longtime partner Rosalind when she was signed to co-write a screenplay for his production company and they began dating.

It was first revealed in 2014 that he was in a relationship with Rosalind, a writer and former riding master, and he welcomed his ninth child, Lars, with her in 2016.

Controversial: The Australian director and actor, 67, has previously mentioned on numerous occasions that the second film, titled The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection, is in the works

Instructions: According to Newsmax, Jim Caviezel will return in the role of Jesus, while Mel will take the lead as director (Mel is pictured at right with Jim as Jesus).

The star’s career has recently seen a resurgence with Hacksaw Ridge, earning his first Oscar nomination in more than two decades.

Mel has previously spoken out about his sobriety, saying in 2016 that he has 10 years of sobriety under his belt as a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.

He has previously admitted that he spent many years with Alcoholics Anonymous and said he would not have survived otherwise.

“They call it the spiritual path for the psychopath. They say there are only three choices: you go insane, you die, or you quit. That’s the harsh reality. I’m an old hand at that,” he told Good Weekend at the time.