More important than the lesson Mel Gibson taught Hollywood about drunken anti-Semitic tirades (that they\u2019re bad for publicity) is the one gleaned from his 2004 film \u201cThe Passion of the Christ.\u201d\u009d The movie demonstrated just how many evangelical moviegoers there are and how much money can be made from them.<\/p>\n
Mindful of that market, Universal Pictures has teamed up with Grace Hill Media, a public relations firm that reaches out to religious groups, to publicize the mainstream film \u201cEvan Almighty.\u201d\u009d Scheduled for wide release on June 22, it stars Steve Carell as a politician who abandons Congress in order to build an ark, taking off on the story of Noah.<\/p>\n
\u201cForty-three percent of this country is in church; that\u2019s a big chunk of folks,\u201d\u009d said Jonathan Bock, the president of Grace Hill Media. \u201cYou get into the once-a-month \u201d\u201d that\u2019s two-thirds of the country. That\u2019s not a little niche audience.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Mr. Bock was approached last year by Universal executives to help with publicity for \u201cEvan Almighty,\u201d\u009d the sequel to the director Tom Shadyac\u2019s 2003 movie \u201cBruce Almighty,\u201d\u009d which starred Jim Carrey.<\/p>\n
One result of the effort isArkAlmighty.com, a Web site that promotes good deeds. It suggests acts of random kindness and helps participating congregations create online bulletin boards to post requests for help and offers of service among members.<\/p>\n