Kristen Bell has claimed to have been blindsided over the use of her voice in a new podcast about the life of Jesus Christ.

Earlier this week, producers at Fox News Audio announced they had signed a licensing deal with Gulfstream Studios to air The Life of Jesus Podcast - a 52-episode series that "will bring stories from the New Testament to life through immersive storytelling".

The podcast will feature over 100 actors voicing figures from the Bible, including Bell as Mary Magdalene, Neal McDonough as Jesus Christ, Brian Cox as the voice of God, Malcolm McDowell as Caiaphas, Sean Astin as Matthew, and John Rhys-Davies as a narrator.

However, in a statement to Rolling Stone on Thursday, a representative noted Bell was surprised by the announcement as she had recorded the audio for a separate project around 15 years ago.

The spokesperson claimed the Nobody Wants This actress never gave her permission for The Truth and Life Dramatized Audio Bible, which was released in 2010, to be repurposed in a new format.

In addition, Bell's team only found out about the podcast when she received an invitation to appear on Fox & Friends this week.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Cox told the outlet that he "had no knowledge his voice" would be used for the Fox News Audio podcast.

"Brian recorded audio for a project over a decade ago. He was unaware that the audio would be repurposed for a new podcast series in 2025," they commented. "Brian only became aware of the podcast today."

The Life of Jesus Podcast will air in alignment with key moments in the Christian calendar, with the first 13 episodes set to drop on 30 November to mark the start of Advent.

In a statement, a Fox News spokesperson insisted that they had obtained all the necessary permissions to produce the podcast.

"Gulfstream Studios produced the Life of Jesus Podcast from The Truth and Life Dramatized Audio Bible, which was licensed by Fox News Audio, with full cooperation and participation by all the actors involved," they declared.