Eric Wiltz, 10, is making his film debut alongside Tank and Fantasia Barrino in Tyler Perry’s new holiday movie, The Gospel of Christmas, now streaming on Netflix.
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Wiltz plays Esau, the younger son of Isaac (Tank) and Rebecca (Fantasia), whose family moves to New York City after Isaac takes over a struggling church. Mason Douglas portrays his older brother, Jacob.
Esau is nonverbal, something his mother sees as a special gift rather than a problem. He also has an extraordinary ability: he can see the angels living in their new church.
At the film’s premiere on November 9, Wiltz spoke with CBS News Atlanta about his character.
“My character’s name is Esau. Um, he’s the son of the pastor,” he said.
The young actor also expressed his admiration for his fellow cast members.
“I look up to all the people I worked with and it was just so awesome working with all those amazing creators,” Wiltz shared.
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Following the premiere, Eric celebrated the milestone by sharing photos from the red carpet on Instagram.
“My first movie premiere with me in the cast! Thank you @tylerperry for letting me be apart of this amazing movie!” he wrote.
Just over a year earlier, Wiltz had gained attention after a video of him singing “The Wizard and I” from Wicked went viral in September 2025. His performance even caught the attention of Cynthia Erivo, who encouraged him to continue pursuing his talent.
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Soon afterward, talent agencies began reaching out to his family. According to an October 2026 interview with Carvd N Stone, Eric’s first audition was for The Gospel of Christmas, and within weeks, he was on his way to Atlanta to film.
“My dreams were actually going to happen,” he told the outlet about landing the role.
After wrapping the movie, Wiltz went on to portray a young Michael Jackson in the national tour of MJ the Musical from December 2025 through May 2026.
