'A Thousand Tomorrows' PureFlix series gives hope to those struggling with deep wounds, actors say
The stars of the new PureFlix series “A Thousand Tomorrows,” based on the bestselling novel by Karen Kingsbury, reflected on how the show highlights the reality that the Christian walk isn’t always easy — but it is nevertheless defined by God’s providence.
The six-part series, which hit PureFlix in February, follows Cody Gunner (Colin Ford), a bull rider grappling with childhood wounds: His father walked out the door on his family because his younger brother, Carl Joseph, was born with Down syndrome.
So, when his father reappears in his life begging for forgiveness, Cody refuses to grant it — it’s his pent-up anger and resentment, he believes, that has contributed to his success as a bull rider. But then, he meets horsewoman Ali Daniels (Rose Reid), a woman whose optimistic perspective on life despite her own struggles with cystic fibrosis upends his world.
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Co-written and produced by Kingsbury and her son, Tyler Russell, “A Thousand Tomorrows” is a story of faith, forgiveness and unending love — but it also tackles tough issues and isn’t neatly wrapped or sanitized, the series leads told The Christian Post.
“Something that a lot of films try to do, but don’t do as well as ‘A Thousand Tomorrows,’ is show this realistic side of faith, where Ali is praying for years that something will change, that she'll be healed. Cody is praying for years that something will change, and he'll be healed. And their prayers are not answered in the way that they expect them to be, or they want them to be. But they're answered all the same," Reid said.
“Cody is healed and Ali is healed in her own way, and I think that's really important to show,” she added. “Viewers will really benefit from seeing a story like that and seeing that maybe it's not going to end up the way that you really hoped it would, and maybe God's not going to answer your prayer the way that you wanted Him to, but it's going to be answered all the same.”
Ford expressed hope that the series will help those struggling with deep wounds to feel less alone and give them hope that they, too, can be healed.
“We go through things in life, we have trials and tribulations, and we often feel like we're very alone in our struggle,” he said. “And I think this story shows you that you're not alone in your struggle there. Cody and Ali have each other, have family members that are supporting them. I think that through faith and support systems that you set in place, you can get through anything.”
The actor shared how filming the series impacted his personal faith journey and revealed he felt called to the role.
“I was doing some praying and asking God for direction in my career and in my life overall, and the next day I got this job, and so I thought, while it's definitely something that I wanted to do, it felt like a purpose, in a way,” he said. “Every single day, in our 30-day shoot, when I would get up in the morning, I just had this extra energy that sometimes I haven't had before on other jobs. I just felt like that was really special.”
“Sometimes when we had long nights that turned into mornings, or I was tired, it just felt a little bit easier knowing that the weight of it all was kind of being lifted off my shoulders by the big man upstairs.”
“A Thousand Tomorrows” is the latest in a slew of family-friendly content from PureFlix, a Christian streaming service helmed by Michael Scott.
Scott told CP that with every project the platform brings to the screen, PureFlix aims to bring viewers “closer to God”
“I think there's so much dark content, all the services out there — it's a lot of really grotesque violence, or sex or language or all these things. And ultimately, I say, the stuff that we put on our service, we want it to point you closer to God, not further away from God. If we can do that, I think we've really accomplished something that is really important,” he said.
Scott stressed the importance of telling stories that speak to the human experience while also highlighting God’s sovereignty over every aspect of life. “A Thousand Tomorrows,” he said, does just that.
“I think when you can take great stories, and wrap faith organically around it and it feels natural to the story and makes sense. I think you can have really good success,” he said. “In each of our stories, you see God show up in different ways. You see how God can really come in the middle of a crisis and pull you out of that.”
“A Thousand Tomorrows” is now streaming on PureFlix.
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com
