Filmmaker Lotfy Nathan has transformed an obscure second-century text about Jesus’ youth into a supernatural thriller, casting Nicolas Cage as Joseph in The Carpenter’s Son, which opens in theaters Friday.

The film draws from the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas, also known as the Paidika, which recounts episodes from Jesus’ childhood that never made it into the New Testament. Nathan, who was raised Coptic Orthodox, first discovered the text through his history-loving father and immediately recognized its cinematic potential.

“The thought gave me chills,” Nathan said. “The novelty of this, in a way, being an origin story that hadn’t been told before.”

Alongside Cage, the film stars FKA twigs and Noah Jupe, following Jesus as a boy tempted by Satan to rebel against his earthly father. While the opening title card establishes the source material, Nathan said he had to expand upon the sparse narrative, adding storylines like the Satanic temptation to create dramatic tension.

“It’s written like a laundry list of events. It doesn’t really have an arc, so to speak,” Nathan said, noting that he consulted historians to enrich the screenplay.

Cage, who had previously read the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, said he was drawn to its familial themes and existential questions. “Family dramas, it’s no secret, is one of my favorite subject matters,” Cage said. “I couldn’t think of a more compelling family dynamic than the Nativity.”

Though the Paidika may surprise modern audiences with accounts of Jesus wielding supernatural powers in morally ambiguous ways, it was historically popular and influential, permeating Christian art, medieval plays, and even the Quran, said Tony Burke, a York University professor specializing in early Christian apocrypha.

“This is not the Jesus that they expect — a Jesus that kills a boy in the marketplace or strikes down his teacher,” Burke said. “In the ancient world, it was not that uncommon to tell stories of revered holy men cursing as well as blessing.”

Other filmmakers have drawn on the Paidika, including the 2016 drama The Young Messiah. Nathan and Cage acknowledged the challenges of adapting texts outside the canonical Gospels, particularly amid potential religious backlash. The American Family Association has criticized the film and petitioned against its release.

“Nobody wanted to offend anybody in the making of this movie,” Cage said. “If anyone does go to this movie, they would see that everyone treated it with love and not with any approach of mockery or contempt. It was all about love.”

The AP contributed to this report.