Neal McDonough Says Playing the Devil Showed Him God’s Grace
By Movieguide® Contributor
Actor Neal McDonough accepted the role of the devil in upcoming film, THE SHIFT.
At first McDonough did not want to play the role of the devil, however his wife, Ruve McDonough, convinced him to play the part.
Neal McDonough told The Christian Post, “I’m so grateful that she convinced me to do it because when you play characters like this, you learn so much about yourself and how blessed I am to have His (God’s) backing in everything that I do, to have all the gifts that God’s given me in my life. My amazing wife, five kids, the movies and TV shows, everything!”
“We all at times have a very mean person in us, all of us; we’re all human,” he added. “There was only one person who was perfect, and everyone else has been trying. And the harder you try, the more the devil will tempt you with stuff.”
As McDonough portrayed his role of the devil, he began to reflect on his life.
“When I get to play a character like this, that’s the devil, I got to learn so much about myself, about how blessed I really am in my life,” he stated.
“We made him [the devil] this 8-year-old spoiled little kid who didn’t get that candy bar, and then by doing so, there’s a moment at the end of the film where you see how crushed the devil is that he can’t understand the love that Kris has for God,” McDonough explained. “You see, ‘aw, that poor dude, he’s all messed up.’ We all have that every day. We all have that ‘poor guy, that guy’s messed up.’ But it’s how you come back from it. It’s how you dust yourself off after you do something that isn’t really a great thing.”
“When I get to play characters like this, it just makes me just delve into how horrible life can be at times, but how amazing life can be when you have a company like Angel Studios or if you have entertainment out there that actually has a place where you can talk about things and talk through these things and what you should do for kids or what you shouldn’t do and where goodness can lead you,” he stated enthusiastically.
McDonough gave praise to Angel Studios for what the franchise stands for and what they create.
“What Angel does no one else is doing. And thank the Lord that they’re doing it because it gives us all as viewers a place to go see content that we feel comfortable watching,” he concluded.
Fans can view THE SHIFT in theatres January 2024.
Movieguide® recently reported on McDonough and the type of films he plans to create:
BAND OF BROTHERS and CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER actor Neal McDonough now wants to portray roles that are more family-friendly and that glorify God.
McDonough is set to portray roles in Angel Studios film THE SHIFT and HOMESTEAD which is from the best-selling book series Black Autumn.
At the Illuminate event hosted by Angel Studios, McDonough stated, “What you are doing is creating a place where our families can watch television and films for years to come knowing that it’s for God’s glory.”
He gave much praise to Angel Studios for their boldness to fill a void in the entertainment industry for families.
“We have five kids, Ruve and I,” McDonough expressed. “How many times do you get to turn on any network or any streaming service and have zero fear about what your kids are about to see? That’s Angel, and that’s because of you guys.”
“We’re going to be here for a long time making great stuff for you all,” he added.
- Content: +1Share:
- Content: +4