Stephen Collins, before the audio taped leaked of him confessing to molesting three young girls, filmed the role of a pedophile priest in the short film Penance.

Stephen Collins 'Penance' Role

"David Lyons plays Thomas Walker, a man hounded by personal demons and inner turmoil who has lived long enough with the scars of his past,” the summary for Penance, which is being played on the film festival circuit, reads. “Stephen Collins is the priest he visits to clear his conscience and discover exactly what it means to find forgiveness – or to give it."

Jeff Wolfe, who directed both Lyons and Collins in Revolution, shot the film in 2013, before there was any hint of Collins’ alleged sordid past. For Wolfe, the revelation was especially troubling considering the message he hoped to deliver with his short film.

"Although my short film, Penance, has recently played at a number of film festivals, it was actually made in 2013. When I cast Stephen Collins, I had no idea there might be a connection between his real life and the part I asked him to play," Wolfe told People magazine. "I found the recent allegations particularly shocking, as my film is meant to speak to victims of abuse and the idea that the effects of abuse never really go away."

Collins, who has not personally commented on the damning audio, will appear in court for divorce proceedings with his estranged wife Faye Grant next month.