Michael Ray Lewis wants UNIVERSE DESIGNED to do more than introduce skeptics to Christian apologetics; he wants the documentary to help believers explain why their faith is true.
“I was overwhelmed by the evidence,” Lewis said in a Movieguide® interview, describing the end of that search.
Lewis, the writer and director of the documentary UNIVERSE DESIGNED, said the project began with his own questions. He describes himself as a former atheist who spent three years investigating scientific, historical and philosophical arguments for Christianity before concluding that God was the best explanation for reality, according to his official biography.
He said a video from astrophysicist Dr. Hugh Ross first pushed him to reconsider whether science and faith had to remain on opposite sides of the conversation. Lewis later described the documentary as a response to the gap between knowing what Christians believe and understanding why they believe it.
That question became the engine of UNIVERSE DESIGNED. The documentary’s official description says it brings together science, philosophy and theology through interviews with Christian thinkers including Dr. Frank Turek, Dr. Hugh Ross, J. Warner Wallace, Alisa Childers and Sean McDowell.
In the interview, Lewis points to the fine-tuning of the universe as one of the arguments that most changed his mind. He also describes the project’s broader path through the origin of the universe, evolution, the reliability of Scripture and the historical case for Jesus’ resurrection.
Lewis insists that viewers should examine the evidence rather than simply accept a conclusion. That emphasis keeps UNIVERSE DESIGNED from functioning only as a testimony; it also serves as an invitation to investigate the claims Christianity makes about reality.
Lewis originally made the documentary for skeptics who might have dismissed a Christian project before giving it a chance. He said he gradually realized that many Christians also needed help answering difficult questions about their faith, especially when they had been taught what to believe but had not been shown why those beliefs could withstand scrutiny.
That makes the documentary an unusual bridge between evangelism and discipleship. Lewis called it “a great evangelistic tool” for believers who do not know how to answer a friend’s question.
At the same time, he wants skeptics to investigate Christianity without treating honest questions as an act of rebellion. The documentary’s official site frames the project as a meeting point for faith, reason and the evidence Lewis says changed his mind.
“My challenge is that it would get people to slow down and start thinking again,” Lewis said. He wants the documentary to spark further research, not replace it, and he encouraged viewers to use the resources collected on the official viewing page after watching.
The project grew from a modest beginning into a feature-length movie. Lewis said he filmed 36 hours of interviews with scholars and apologists, then condensed that material into a 1-hour, 25-minute documentary designed to remain accessible without abandoning its central questions.
UNIVERSE DESIGNED launched digitally in December 2025, according to a release from Today’s Christian Entertainment. The documentary’s official viewing page currently lists Amazon Prime, Google Play, Apple TV, DVD and Blu-ray options, although availability can vary by platform and location.
For Lewis, the point is not to win an argument for argument’s sake. It is to help people take the biggest questions seriously — and to remember that faith in Jesus is not a retreat from truth, but a claim about reality that deserves an honest look.
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