David A.R. White on New ‘God’s Not Dead’: ‘This Was a Tough One’

“This was a tough one for us,” filmmaker David A.R. White (shown above left) told LifeZette in an exclusive interview about his latest feature, “God’s Not Dead: A Light in the Darkness,” a film he produced and in which he plays a lead role.

After the massive success of the first two “God’s Not Dead” movies, White, who is also a co-founder of Pure Flix Entertainment, hired multiple screenwriters to take a crack at a worthy story for the next chapter of the franchise.

“The theme of the first movie was about faith being challenged on a college campus. The second one was really about truth being challenged in the global square,” said White.

He also told LifeZette, “With this one, we went ’round and ’round.”

Despite the multiple stories that were put forth, White said it “didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel like it was supposed to be told.”

White and company eventually settled on a film that drew inspiration from today’s dark and socially divided culture.

The focus of the movie became Rev. Dave (David A.R. White), a character who has been a relatively stable source of inspiration in the “God’s Not Dead” franchise thus far.

In the film, the reverend finds his own faith tested when his church is burned to the ground. Viewers will get to see more of Dave’s personal life as well, as his atheist brother (John Corbett) is introduced to the story.

“Rev. Dave, in the first two movies, has been pretty easygoing,” said White, who added that viewers don’t need to have seen the other “God’s Not Dead” movies to enjoy this new chapter.

A film like “God’s Not Dead: A Light in the Darkness” is not the most common sight today, as cinema grows darker and darker and more and more cynical. This film allows for the darkness — but also shows that there is a way out of such darkness and a way for us all to connect.

“Art is relevant. It allows us to connect on a different [level] than what we could normally.”

White believes such art can help bridge the widening cultural gaps today.

“Art is relevant. It allows us to connect on a different [level] than what we could normally,” he said.

“God’s Not Dead: A Light in the Darkness” is in theaters today.

PopZette editor Zachary Leeman can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter.