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Asked if he was surprised to hear that from church leaders, Godfrey said, "I was and I wasn't. I mean, the truth is that about a month in advance of the film's release, you know that you can't catch up; you realize you're not getting to everybody. And by that point, there's only so many people to reach. You can't save the movie a week ahead of it opening. You really need to have been ahead of it by two or three months."

But Godfrey said he has no regrets about how it was handled.

Godfrey on the 'Nativity' set

"By about December 20th, I quit thinking about it," he said. "You can kill yourself obsessing about how it could have done better, but you just need to move forward. And the truth is, we remain very proud of the movie, and we think those who saw it—and will see it on DVD—will find something special.

"We don't have any regrets. We really feel like the movie works. And you can't exclusively make movies for commercial reasons. You really do need to make them from the heart, and because you're passionate about them."

Godfrey said the good news is that he and co-producer Marty Bowen—both Christians—feel like the table has been set for more faith-based films from major studios (New Line produced the Lord of the Rings films), and any lessons they've learned from The Nativity Story can be applied to future projects.

"I think we've built a strong foundation," Godfrey said. "I feel like this will bear more fruit down the line for more faith-based films. And I feel confident that we've made relationships around the country with church leaders, and next time we'll be better prepared with our marketing plan.

"We feel like there's enough of an audience that does want these movies. Not necessarily Bible stories, but inspirational movies. Our instinct right now is that the next one we do might be more of a contemporary faith-based movie."

Godfrey said he's had "numerous conversations" with New Line CEO Bob Shaye about The Nativity Story's performance. "His evaluation was kind of like a shrug of the shoulders," said Godfrey, "and that you never know exactly why a movie didn't become a huge hit or not. But he's very proud of the movie, and said they want to make more movies for the faith-based audience. It's not like The Nativity Story made them say, 'All right, we gave it a shot, and we're done with that.' They actually came out of it more emboldened by it."

Hardwicke said she's excited about the DVD because it grants the film a "new life" after its theatrical release. And she hopes that life will endure for generations, as families pull it out year after year along with the likes of It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol, A Christmas Story, and other holiday favorites.

She also thinks it'll translate well from the big screen to the small.

"In a way, our film has a big quality in some of those beautiful, amazing shots in Morocco and the desert," she said. "But we do think people will be able to enjoy it in a more personal way at home, because it's an intimate story of two people [Joseph and Mary] and their struggle with their faith and their hope and that they're doing the right thing."

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