“Duck Dynasty” stars Phil and Kay Robertson are two of the most beloved reality TV personalities in cable history, but their lives weren’t always filled with so much laughter and love.
Long before their A&E glory days, the Robertsons struggled in their marriage, with Phil finding himself lost, aloof, disconnected from his wife and children, womanizing, and dependent on alcohol.
Phil’s journey of leaving the mess behind and embracing Jesus — and Kay’s quest to forgive — are at the center of a new film called “The Blind,” opening in theaters nationwide Sept. 28.
Watch Phil and Miss Kay tell their story:
The couple and their famous family hope the drama helps show people the power that can come from finding Jesus.
And they said opening up and being vulnerable about past mistakes wasn’t necessarily easy.
“It was embarrassing for me … when you tell people your sins,” Phil told CBN’s Faithwire. “You’ve already told them to God; He knew them.”
Kay, too, said the experience of being so forthcoming was difficult.
“It was pretty hard,” she said. “When I saw [the film] the first time, I cried from start to finish, because it was just so real, and they were doing such a great job … playing us, and then it was like reliving the hardest time of your life.”
Phil said he was a “drunkard and a heathen” and that it was humbling to watch it all play out on the big screen. Miss Kay, for her part, described Phil as “hard,” “distrusting,” and a very “jealous” man before he came to faith — attributes observed in “The Blind.”
“He just had some devil qualities … and I would tell the boys … ‘That’s the devil in him. He’s a good man, but the devil has got a hold of him. He’s living in him right now. And what we want is to pray for God to get him out,'” she recounted.
Both Phil and Miss Kay see “The Blind” as much more than a mere lens into their family’s redemption story; the couple believe the film is another opportunity to share the Gospel — something they’ve been passionate about for decades.
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“I’ve noticed that when you love God and love your neighbor and you make known that you follow Jesus Christ — His death, burial, resurrection — that’s all I’ve been saying the last 40 years, 50 years,” he said. “So … whatever comes out of it is what comes out of it, but I didn’t plan on being on some kind of movie.”
And yet God clearly led the Robertsons to tell their story through “The Blind,” offering a cinematic and very serious look at a family known for comedic antics and fun-filled and faith messages.
Sharing the story is an opportunity for people to discover the Lord, Phil said, adding his hope people will be “converted to Jesus Christ, understanding his sins, her sins have been removed.”
“If it converts one person, I’m like, ‘Hey, rock on,'” Phil said. “If it converts a thousand, I’m like, ‘Rock on.'”
As for Miss Kay, she offered a powerful message to anyone struggling and finding themselves in the same difficult situation she once faced.
“Number one, they have to read their Bible and know that God can get you through anything,” she said. “But, sometimes, it’s on his timing; it’s not on yours.”
Miss Kay spent 10 years trusting God in hopes her marriage and life would be restored — and it eventually was brought to a place of true peace, hope, and love.
“Just don’t give up,” she said.
Read more about “The Blind” and get tickets.
“Long before Phil Robertson was a reality TV star, he fell in love, started a family, and began to spiral out of control,” the synopsis reads. “‘The Blind’ shares never-before-revealed moments in Phil’s life as he seeks to conquer the shame of his past, ultimately finding redemption in an unlikely place.”
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