An apocalyptic thriller studded with biblical allusions, The Reaping seems primed to strike a chord with audiences who favor a dose of spiritual introspection with their horror.

In this Warner Bros. release, Hilary Swank plays a former Christian missionary dedicated to debunking religious phenomena around the world. She runs into a crisis of faith when she encounters something she cannot rationally explain: a cloistered Southern township ostensibly suffering from the ten plagues of ancient Egypt.

“We believe the movie is about a woman’s return to faith,” says Chad Hayes, who wrote the screenplay with his brother Carey. “We hope that anyone who watches it will think of how the film applies to whatever his or her belief is.”

Indeed, the film’s loose-ended structure invites multiple interpretations, and is specially designed to provoke discussion about the spiritual forces at work in the world. 

“I fully believe there are things that go on that we have no understanding of,” says director Stephen Hopkins, whose previous credits include Lost in Space and Predator 2. “I watch this movie and I feel like this could have happened.”

At least one member of the cast believes it did. AnnaSophia Robb, who plays a peculiar little girl whose intentions are not fully known until the film’s final act, says, “It happened in the Bible, so it’s real. At least for me.”

Hilary Swank, who plays the film’s intrepid miracle-debunker, likes supernatural thrillers. “I like my character in this one. Her whole belief system is turned around several times throughout the course of the movie.”

Many of the cast and crew confessed to a spiritual, if not necessarily Christian, influence in their lives. “On set, we’d sit down and discuss what our personal beliefs were,” says Idris Elba, who plays Swank’s friend and colleague. Though initially a believer in ghosts, Elba now admits to skepticism on such matters. “Filmmakers often make great skeptics,” he says, explaining how the documentation of reality can sometimes lead to sobering conclusions.

Producer Joel Silver, the man behind such blockbusters as The Matrix, Die Hard, and Lethal Weapon, is confident that The Reaping will appeal to fans of the horror genre. “Horror films are the only movies that can change your physical state,” he says.

Who knows—with a little intervention, maybe they can change one’s spiritual state as well.

Nathaniel Bell participated in roundtable discussions with the cast and crew of The Reaping during a local LA press tour.