In 1997, Robert Duvall released what had been a major passion project for the veteran star. “The Apostle,” which Duvall wrote and directed, also saw him star as a preacher who escapes his former life after an act of violence and starts a new church. It was a modest commercial success but a critical triumph, with reviewers commending Duvall on a project that had taken a long time to come to fruition. Roger Ebert was particularly impressed, awarding “The Apostle” a perfect four stars and praising Duvall for his nuanced depiction of a flawed holy man.

Duvall, who passed away on February 15, 2026, at the age of 95,, won the Best Actor Oscar for playing country singer Mac Sledge in Bruce Beresford’s 1983 drama “Tender Mercies.” But he was nominated several more times, including for “The Apostle.” For the actor, it must have been an even more humbling moment than usual to receive the nomination, as he’d had significant trouble even getting the film made. According to a 1997 New York Times profile, a then-66-year-old Duvall spent $5 million of his own money to make “The Apostle,” which was rejected by studios for 13 years.

As far as Ebert saw it, that was all due to the fact the film was “about something” which in his estimation “scares” studios. It needn’t have. “The Apostle” made $21.2 million at the box office against its $5 million budget and earned widespread praise, especially from noted movie lovers like Ebert. The critic seemed particularly taken with “The Apostle,” however, which he described as “a lesson in how movies can escape from convention and penetrate the hearts of rare characters.”

Robert Duvall was one of the best male actors of all time. He was also a religious man and clearly harbored a desire to explore belief on the big screen throughout his career. The son of a Methodist father and a Christian Scientist mother, Duvall told the New York Times he had essentially been working on the idea for “The Apostle” since the early 1960s when he witnessed a Pentecostal preacher deliver a sermon in a small Arkansas chapel. The actor continued to collect ideas and inspiration in the years after and eventually wrote a screenplay that was finished in 1984. Unfortunately, nobody wanted to make it.

“The Apostle” focuses on Euliss F. “Sonny” Dewey, a Texas-based Pentecostal preacher who discovers his wife is cheating on him with a youth minister. The first indication that this is no straightforward lionization of the faithful comes when Dewey whacks that youth minister with a baseball bat, ultimately killing him. This prompts the preacher to flee to Louisiana; there, he reinvents himself as “The Apostle E. F.” and starts a new church. Eventually, Dewey forms a congregation that crosses racial boundaries and seems to have successfully escaped his former life. But things aren’t quite as stable as they appear, and after his ex-wife hears a radio broadcast featuring “The Apostle E. F.,” she calls in the authorities.

Aside from Duvall, the film features a strong cast that includes Billy Bob Thornton as a racist convert as well as Walton Goggins, Miranda Richardson, and Farrah Fawcett, among others. It was also met with critical praise across the board, with reviewers commending Duvall for his grounded, nuanced take on faith. Nobody, however, was quite as complimentary as Roger Ebert.

Eventually, Robot Duvall put up $5 million of his own money to make “The Apostle,” which finally secured distribution after screening at the 1997 Toronto International Film Festival. It had been a long time coming, but when the film debuted in December 1997, it was all worth it. Duvall clearly designed “The Apostle” as a way for movies to finally take evangelical faith seriously. That’s not to say “seriously” in the sense that it takes an unquestioning approach to Christian beliefs themselves, but in the sense that it treats the characters as real, flawed people and doesn’t shy away from showcasing their own struggles with faith.

As Roger Ebert saw it, Duvall had crafted a script that “sees its characters in an unusually perceptive light,” presenting them with all the “complexity and spontaneity of people in a documentary.” Duvall was always a master of crafting grounded characters that felt lived-in, bringing a naturalistic element to every part he played. With “The Apostle,” then, he’d brought that same sense of realism to the project as a whole, writing a script that Ebert described as “astonishingly subtle.” “There isn’t a canned and prefab story arc, with predictable stops along the way,” wrote the critic. “Instead, the movie feels as alive as if it’s a documentary of things happening right now.”

Granted, Ebert also gave a perfect score to Zack Snyder’s controversial “Watchmen” movie and the mediocre Samuel L. Jackson thriller “Lakeview Terrace.” But he was far from the only critic who loved “The Apostle,” which stands as a testament to Duvall’s remarkable talent for nuance and subtlety to this day.