As a Christian, Billy Hallowell trusts in the biblical accounts of angels and demons, but as an investigative reporter, he wasn’t ready to accept stories of spiritual beings influencing the modern world without digging into the evidence.
He found plenty of credible sources and compelling testimonials during his research for “Investigating the Supernatural: Angels and Demons,” the second documentary in his series with filmmaker Jarrod Anderson for the Christian Broadcasting Network.
“Even though I believed a lot of these things in my mind, I’m a natural skeptic,” said Mr. Hallowell, a columnist and digital host for The Washington Times.
“When I come into a story, if you tell me you’ve experienced a miracle or seen an angel or a demon, I say, OK, prove that to me. Show me this is actually happening,” he added.
The documentary released March 16 tracks Mr. Hallowell as he interviews not only theologians, but scientists, psychologists and eyewitnesses lending credence to the idea that paranormal entities continue to cross paths with humans in an ongoing spiritual battle between good and evil.
“I think Jarrod and I both have a very high standard in wanting to know that what we’re presenting is actually true,” Mr. Hallowell said. “We really spent a lot of time on these stories to make sure that what we’re presenting was going to be compelling.”
At the end of the project, he said, “I can speak for myself, my mind was really blown away by a lot of the stories we encountered.”
They include the account of Bruce Van Natta, a former auto mechanic who was nearly crushed to death when a semi-truck fell on him during a 2006 repair. As he lay on the garage floor, he said he saw two enormous angels appear and touch his chest, restarting his heart.
“For me, after what I experienced, angels are 1000% real,” Mr. Van Natta, who now heads Sweet Bread Ministries in Rudolph, Wisconsin, said in the film. “If the angels hadn’t come to the scene of the accident, I would have bled out and died.”
Those presenting the scientific case include Hugh Ross, an astrophysicist with a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto, who argues that the strongest evidence for demon activity lies in UFO encounters.
He said that as a young academic, he was often put in charge of handling UFO reports. He said he was able to chalk up about 99% to natural phenomena or military activity, but still found thousands of documented cases where “what we’re seeing is real, but it violates the laws of physics.”
He said he’s not alone.
Among physicists who have studied UFOs for at least a decade, he said, “they all agree, whether they’re atheist or agnostic, we’re dealing with something beyond the dimensions of the universe.”
Mr. Ross, who founded Reasons to Believe in Covina, California, a ministry dedicated to showing that “science and Christian faith are allies, not enemies,” said those reporting close encounters with UFOs are inevitably traumatized. A significant percentage end up committing suicide.
Vice President J.D. Vance might be interested in this documentary.
Last weekend, in an interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, he said he’s “obsessed” with the federal government’s UFO files and described aliens as “demons.”
“I don’t think they’re aliens. I think they’re demons anyway, but that’s a longer discussion,” Mr. Vance said.
Mr. Vance has plenty of company.
Polling shows that as many as 50% of Americans believe that demons exist, while 80% believe in a spiritual realm beyond the natural world.
“Every single culture from the beginning of time has had reports and reports of angels and demons, of a spiritual realm. This is not a new issue,” Mr. Hallowell said. “It’s something that transcends time.”
New CBN ’Supernatural’ Film Explores Reality of Angels, Demons, and Spiritual Warfare
In this follow-up to CBN’s “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles,” CBN News investigative journalist Billy Hallowell takes a deep look into one of the most misunderstood and debated topics… pic.twitter.com/TUFHYAlDCZ
— CBN News (@CBNNews) March 16, 2026
Indeed, “Angels and Demons” comes with interest in religion and the supernatural soaring.
The release last year of Mr. Hallowell’s first documentary, “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles,” coincided with the release of theologian Lee Strobel’s bestseller, “Seeing the Supernatural,” which includes an examination of angels and demons.
“When we started the ’Miracles’ documentary, there were like four other documentaries that came out right after that focused on miracles,” Mr. Anderson said. “And then Lee Strobel’s book came out. It’s been really amazing to see just such a surge and interest in talking about these kinds of things.”
The documentary series follows in the tradition of the investigative approach to Christianity pioneered by Mr. Strobel, a former reporter for the Chicago Tribune who has written more than a dozen books.
He also appears in the “Angels and Demons” documentary.
“We were able to tap into his expertise because very few people have taken the approach that he has to faith, where he’s going in, looking for evidence, pulling the evidence together, creating a narrative that’s obviously faith-filled, but also helps people understand the faith,” Mr. Hallowell said.
“Angels and Demons,” written and directed by Mr. Anderson, follows Mr. Hallowell as he interviews experts and witnesses while delving into the research, but it’s not just talking heads. A significant part of the film is devoted to dramatic reenactments of the most compelling incidents.
Their first documentary, “Miracles,” won the Best Documentary prize last month at the Movieguide Faith & Values Awards Gala against stiff competition, including Mr. Strobel’s film “The Case for Miracles” and actor Kevin Costner’s “The First Christmas.”
“We were just grateful to be nominated, and we were very shocked to win that award,” said Mr. Hallowell, who also produces the films.
In the works is the team’s third documentary, on heaven and hell, including near-death experiences, a topic touched on in the first two films.
“One of the challenges we have with the films is that sometimes they do weave together,” Mr. Anderson said. “In ’Angels and Demons,’ in the final story about Bruce Van Natta, he had a healing miracle, he saw angels, and he had a near-death experience.”
Both Mr. Anderson and Mr. Hallowell describe themselves as evangelical Christians, although they took different paths.
Mr. Hallowell grew up in the faith in New York, while Mr. Anderson said he was a “Navy brat” who became a Christian at age 18 while his family was stationed in Washington state.
The documentary comes from a Christian perspective, but Mr. Hallowell said the subject matter should appeal to believers and nonbelievers alike.
“What these films do is offer Christians an opportunity to look deeper at their faith, and maybe think about what they’ve been missing, but for non-Christians and nonbelievers to be challenged with that evidence,” he said. “I think there’s something for everyone in this particular film.”
