I Can Only Imagine 2 (2026)
Directed by: Andrew Erwin and Brent Mccorkle
Premise: A sequel to the 2018 film. Bart Millard (John Michael Finley) of the Christian band MercyMe is alienated from his teenage son (Sammy Dell) and struggles with writer’s block. His relationship with fellow musician Tim Timmons (Milo Ventimiglia) leads him to write “Even If.”
What Works: I Can Only Imagine was a story of personal trauma begetting artistic inspiration as musician Bart Millard channeled his abusive childhood into a successful song. That’s a familiar show business success story. The second film has a more interesting premise. Years later, MercyMe is in a financial and creative rut. They haven’t had a hit song in awhile and Millard struggles with writer’s block. Millard’s creative struggles are tied to his family life. His oldest son Sam has Type 1 diabetes and requires regular blood monitoring, which has turned Millard into a helicopter parent and caused him to doubt his capacities as a father. The narrative logjam is broken by Tim Timmons, a musician with a sense of humor and some unconventional spiritual ideas. Timmons’ story is the best part of the film, in part due to the performance by Milo Ventimiglia. He plays Timmons as a jokester with an intellectual regard for faith and the mix of humor and sage advice makes Timmons the most interesting character in the movie.
What Doesn’t: Unfortunately, Timmons’ story is a subplot. The main focus of I Can Only Imagine 2 is on Millard’s relationship with his son and that is terminally uninteresting. Millard hovers over his son because if the teenager doesn’t monitor his blood sugar levels he could die and Sam resents his father’s vigilance. Both characters come across whinny. Virtually nothing happens in the movie. The relationship between Millard and Sam has no escalation or tension. It’s not even good generational conflict. They’re just mildly annoyed with each other and the reconciliation is hollow. MercyMe goes on tour but their only challenge is a bus breakdown and even that doesn’t result in anything. It’s implied that the band is in a challenging economic situation but nothing comes of that. Timmons has cancer but there is no sense of drama even as he gets sicker. The film culminates with a performance of “Even If” and it’s supposed to be a big emotional climax but it has no dramatic impact. I Can Only Imagine 2 is billed as a faith-based movie that’s intended to inspire the audience. At that it completely fails. There is no spiritual struggle here. Faith is mostly treated as an afterthought.
Bottom Line: I Can Only Imagine 2 is a lousy sequel. Whatever potential it may have is squandered in a film that is devoid of drama, insight, or interest. Even the faith-based audience should skip this one.
Episode: #1089 (March 1, 2026)