Poster © Lionsgate. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreBiography, Drama & Music
RatedPG
Runtime1 hr 50 mins
ReleasedFebruary 20, 2026
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorAndrew Erwin, Brent McCorkle
StarringJohn Michael Finley, Milo Ventimiglia, Sophie Skelton
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I Can Only Imagine 2 (2026)
| ▶Stream It | ★The Numbers |
| 🎫Get Tickets | ✎Edit History |
| iIMDb Profile | %Rotten Tomatoes |
| WWikipedia | LLetterboxd |
| TTMDB | +Add to Top 8 |
| I Can Only Imagine 2's Details | |
| Genre | Biography, Drama & Music |
| Rated | PG |
| Released | 02/20/2026 |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 1 hr 50 mins |
| Budget | $18M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Based On | The life story of Bart Millard |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| I Can Only Imagine 2's Interests | |
| General | Tour buses, opening slots, hymn books, guitar lessons, glucose monitors, family road trips. |
| Music | Brent McCorkle. Plus MercyMe, obviously, and an old hymn with a story behind it. |
| Movies | I Can Only Imagine (2018). Start here, the song has a whole origin story. |
| Television | This Is Us. Milo Ventimiglia, making dads cry since 2016. |
| Heroes | Tim Timmons. Opening act, hymn lover, quietly the heart of the tour. |
| I Can Only Imagine 2's Crew | |
| Director | Andrew Erwin, Brent McCorkle |
| Writers | Brent McCorkle |
| Producers | Cindy Bond, Kevin Downes, Bart Millard, Daryl Lefever, Joshua Walsh |
| Cinematography | Johnny Derango |
| Music | Brent McCorkle |
| Edited By | John Puckett |
| Production | Kingdom Story Company, LD Entertainment, Mission Pictures International, Kevin Downes Productions |
| Distributed By | Lionsgate |
Bart Millard needs a second hit song, and I Can Only Imagine 2 has the same problem: it mostly replays the first one. The first film was about Bart and a hard father. This one makes Bart the father who can’t let go, hovering over his teenage son Sam’s blood sugar like an air traffic controller while Sam just wants to play guitar on tour. You can hear every big speech coming. The lift comes from Milo Ventimiglia. His Tim Timmons, the opening act who carries a hymn book everywhere and marks an X on his wrist out of gratitude, is warm, funny and easy to root for. His scene telling a crowd the story behind It Is Well with My Soul is the film’s best. John Michael Finley is solid as Bart. Audiences gave it an A+ CinemaScore, which is rare. A 5.8 because the faith and heart are sincere and the story is a replay. $65.68 says you find a recording of It Is Well with My Soul tonight and let it play twice.
What works: Milo Ventimiglia’s Tim Timmons is warm and generous, and the film treats faith, music and family with obvious sincerity.
What doesn’t: The father and son conflict retreads the first movie almost beat for beat, and the dialogue spells out every lesson before it lands.
Who it’s for: Fans of the first film and of MercyMe, and families looking for an uplifting movie night with a soundtrack they can sing along to.
Spoilers
Tim reveals he has been diagnosed with cancer and asks Bart to finish his song, Even If. Bart and Sam make peace when the tour bus breaks down, Bart sings Even If for Tim at Red Rocks, and the closing cards say Tim beat his prognosis and became a father of four.
After MercyMe's "I Can Only Imagine" turns into the most-played song Christian radio has ever had, frontman Bart Millard (John Michael Finley) needs a follow-up. Ten years later, he is still chasing it. His teenage son Sam (Sammy Dell) has Type 1 diabetes, a guitar habit, and no patience for his dad's hovering. When manager Scott Brickell (Trace Adkins) gets the band bumped up to headliner, Bart's wife Shannon (Sophie Skelton) agrees to let Sam join the tour, and the opening act is Tim Timmons (Milo Ventimiglia), a songwriter who carries a hymn book everywhere. Andrew Erwin and Brent McCorkle direct. One hundred eleven minutes, one crowded tour bus.
Dads and teenage sons who need a long bus ride to finally talk it out.
| John Michael Finley | Bart Millard |
| Milo Ventimiglia | Tim Timmons |
| Sophie Skelton | Shannon Street Millard |
| Arielle Kebbel | Hilary Larson Timmons |
| Trace Adkins | Scott Brickell |
| Dennis Quaid | Arthur Millard |
| Sammy Dell | Sam Millard |
| Mark Furze | Nathan Cochran |
| Ezra Prōch | Robbie Shaffer |
| Jason Burkey | Mike Scheuchzer |
| Aaron Benward | Barry Graul |
| Anjelah Johnson-Reyes | Dr. Ramirez |
| Island Austin | Gracie Millard |
| Jake Johnston | Charlie Millard |
| Isabella Moon | Sophie Millard |
| Luke Vollrath | Miles Millard |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 18 October 2026 DataBot +480 Numbers refreshed: Worldwide box office $18.7M; Domestic box office $18.6M; Opening weekend $7.8M; Profit / loss (est.) -$17.6M; Rotten Tomatoes 60%; CinemaScore A+; box office chart updated; Rotten Tomatoes critics 60% (25 reviews); Metacritic 43 / 100; CinemaScore A+; IMDb users 7.0 / 10 (1,860 votes); movie.guru score 6.1.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 18 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.