Who did Christo Jivkov play in Passion of the Christ ? Cause of death explored as actor dies aged 48

Well-known Bulgarian actor Christo Jivkov passed away on March 31 after a long struggle with cancer. He was 48. He was known for his appearance as St. John in the 2004 biblical drama film, The Passion of the Christ.

Italian actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta took to Facebook to announce the news. She shared a picture of Jivkov and wrote:

"Still don't wanna believe you are gone… endless pain. Hello Christo, my friend, gentle soul, your fight for life, was the fight of all those who love you."

Maria Grazia Cucinotta paid tribute to Christo Jivkov on Facebook (Image via Maria Grazia Cucinotta/Facebook)

Another actress and television presenter, Eliana Miglio, also paid tribute to Jivkov by posting a still from one of his projects and writing:

"Christo Jivkov. This magnificent actor with whom I worked in an Italian-Romanian film The best solution, E mai bine asa by Luca Mazzieri has been missed young."

Further details about Christo's cancer are yet to be revealed, and his family members are yet to issue a statement on his death.

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Christo Jivkov was active in the entertainment industry since 2001

Christo Jivkov was known for his appearance on Passion of the Christ (Image via Christo Jivkov/Facebook)

Born on February 18, 1975, Christo Jivkov pursued graduation from the Bulgarian Film and Theater Academy, following which he made his debut with The Profession of Arms in 2001.

Jivkov eventually gained recognition for his performance as St. John in The Passion of the Christ, which was released in 2004. Directed by Mel Gibson, the film focused on the final 12 hours before Jesus Christ's death, and despite being a hit at the box office, the film received a mixed response, with praise for the performances but criticism towards the graphic content.

A sequel to the film was confirmed to be in development for a long time, and Gibson disclosed in 2016 that the sequel was scheduled to release soon. While speaking to Pastor Greg Laurie at the SoCal Harvest Crusade in California, Jivkov revealed that Randall Wallace was hired to pen the screenplay and mentioned:

"Of course, that is a huge undertaking, and you know, it's not the Passion 2. It's called The Resurrection, Of course, that's a very big subject and it needs to be looked at because we don't want to just do a simple rendering of it – you know, read what happened."

Speaking about his interest in working on a sequel to The Passion of the Christ, Wallace mentioned to The Hollywood Reporter that he always wanted to tell the story and that there are a lot of stories left to tell.

Christo was reported to be a part of the sequel, but further details on the status of the sequel are yet to be disclosed.