According to a report by the "Austria Presse Agentur" (APA) on Tuesday, Gibson has entrusted the Polish actress Kasia Smutniak with the role of the Virgin Mary.
According to the media, the criticism was triggered by an article in which Smutniak publicly supported the right to abortion and repeatedly criticised Polish legislation on abortion as a threat to women's rights.
The former right-wing populist governing party Law and Justice (PiS) also joined in the criticism. The party intervened in the debate and sent a letter of protest to the film production, according to the report.
In the letter, the party emphasised that the depiction of the Virgin Mary was incompatible with Smutniak's stance on abortion. In principle, abortion is prohibited in Poland, where the regulations are among the most restrictive in Europe.
An abortion is only permitted if the woman's life or health is at risk or if the pregnancy is the result of rape.
The 46-year-old Smutniak began her career as a model. Her breakthrough came with the 2003 film "Radio West".
Today, the Polish actress is one of the best-known actresses in Italian cinema.
Now she is to portray the mother of Jesus in Mel Gibson's sequel "The Resurrection".
It was recently announced that the 2004 cinema success is to be released without the former leading actors Jim Caviezel (Jesus) and Monica Bellucci (Mary Magdalene).
The lead role will be played by Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen (known from the Netflix series "The Last Kingdom"), while Cuban actress Mariela Garriga (known from "Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning") will play the role of Mary Magdalene.
Pontius Pilate will be played by Italian actor Riccardo Scamarcio (known from "John Wick: Chapter 2"). Filming has already begun in Italy.