Real Talk with the "Breakthrough" Movie Team

"Breakthrough" video interviews by Stephanie Stovall (CatholicMom.com)

Copyright 2019 Stephanie Stovall. All rights reserved.[/caption] Have you seen Breakthrough yet? It’s the miraculous story of a boy that fell through an icy lake, was pronounced dead and is now alive and has a major motion picture based on this event. All because his adoptive mom, Joyce Smith (played by Chrissy Metz of "This Is Us") prayed boldly. Joyce received the call all parents dread and some strong, faithful prayers and wailing cries later, the Smith family’s life was forever changed. Joyce cried out to the Holy Spirit and the Spirit responded through a pulse in John and a newly beeping monitor. Today, John Smith is 18 years old with a dream to become a pastor someday. This wasn’t the dream he had before he fell into the icy waters. John was a young boy with a struggling faith and carried a hurt heart from feeling unwanted by his birth mom. I sat down with “the real” John Smith and was privileged to hear him share his heart on the journey he has taken to not only heal but prosper in his faith life through forgiveness. To say that I was inspired by his words would be an understatement. As I sat and listened to this 18-year-old going on 40, I was taught a lesson I didn’t expect to hear that day. Watch my interview with John: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBzgCTMFmcA Chrissy Metz has a remarkable story herself that lead her to truly feeling born to play the role of Joyce Smith. Her mom experienced her own miraculous healing just months before Metz was offered the part. The timing of my interview with Metz was of curious timing as well. For all you "This Is Us" fans, I sat down with her right after the episode where Kate’s baby was born with major complications. And what did Kate do? She prayed. See the full interview: https://youtu.be/uFi_-jXcGBw Spoiler! Did you know Metz was a talent agent before becoming an actress?! IIII know! Me neither! And did you know Roxann Dawson, the director, is Catholic? Pretty awesome! Breakthrough is the first time she read a script and said, “this is the kind of story I want to tell.” DeVon Franklin (producer), Roxann and I got a chance to chat about God’s hand on this project and how it came to fruition. Check out our convo: https://youtu.be/asRnIsf2ANA Honestly, this movie is a great family flick. My boys reference the film All. Of. The. Time. It’s almost ridiculous how much they bring up this movie, but really, so sweet. They are some of John Smith’s biggest fans. (Bonus: The convos about Breakthrough are a great segue to “Well, boys, that’s why you have to always listen to us when we say ...” lectures.) Christian movies have definitely come a long way -- and this one does not disappoint. It’ll leave you feeling like you got to sneak a peek at the Spirit’s inner workings in our lives. This is one of those rare instances you get to see the rhyme and reason. It’s intense. It’s light. It’s great entertainment. Best of all, it’s some out-of-the-box God time for all. Catch Breakthrough in theaters now!