Stars of 'The Chosen' Dish On Season 4, Plus All You Need To Know Before The Premiere
On January 17th, the cast, crew, creators and fans of the groundbreaking series The Chosen walked the "teal carpet" at the Ace Theater in Los Angeles in celebration of the highly-awaited season 4 premiere — and Woman's World was there to get all the insider information!
"Teal is the color of our show," says Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of The Chosen. "It's the color of light, it's the color of water, it's the color of sky. So we just thought, 'Let's be on brand.' We've always done things a little bit outside the box."
This radical, hope-filled series — that follows Jesus and His disciples through the ups and downs of His ministry — has become one of the most-watched shows in the world, having been viewed by over 200 million people in 180 countries and translated into 600 languages. It quickly became the largest crowdfunded media project ever.
Now, The Chosen is making its fourth groundbreaking season even more accessible to the public with episodes being rolled out in theaters across America.
Starting February 1st, the series will be shown in theaters (get tickets here) in 2-3 episode groupings for a singular viewing experience. With episodes 1-3 airing on February 1st, episodes 4-6 on February 15th and episodes 7-8 on February 29th.
“Every time we’ve dipped our toes in the theatrical waters, viewers have overwhelmingly told us they want more,” Jenkins says. “After seeing the season 4 episodes, we knew we’d be doing our fans a disservice if we denied them the chance to see them all on a big screen with others they can laugh and cry with.”
In addition, to help viewers get even more up-close and personal with the show, its mission and beloved stars — and to help fans gear up for The Chosen season 4 premiere! — a new The Chosen special collector’s edition magazine from the editors of TV Guide has hit the market.
It is bursting with insider info on all four seasons, episode recaps, stunning photos and insights into the lives of Jonathan Roumie who plays Jesus, Elizabeth Tabish who plays Mary Magdalene and the Disciples like Paras Patel, Noah James, Shahar Isaac and more!
Buy The Chosen Special Collector's Edition here!
What to expect in The Chosen season 4 premiere
In season 4, Jesus, the Disciples and other followers — like Mary Magdalene — are up against rulers and powers that seek to stop them. The enemies of Jesus close in while His followers struggle to keep up, leaving Him to carry the burden alone.
Religious leaders are threatened by Jesus’ growing influence, which pushes them to do the unthinkable — ally with their Roman oppressors. As the seeds of betrayal are planted and opposition to Jesus’ message turns violent, He’s left with no alternative but demand his followers rise up!
The Chosen
“Throughout history, Christians and non-Christians have wrestled with issues of ‘Why does God allow evil?’; ‘Why do some people get blessings and others seem to be cursed?’; ‘Where is God when you’re experiencing challenge?’; ‘Where is Jesus in the midst of oppression?’ We really dive into that in season 4,” Jenkins says.
Jenkins continues: “We don’t rush through it. We know that in season 7 Jesus rises from the dead. That’s a joyous moment — it’d be nice and fun to just get there quickly so we can all celebrate. But that’s not life. That’s not the story of the gospel, and it’s certainly not this story.”
The Chosen on maintaining authenticity
The creators, cast and crew of The Chosen pride themselves on telling the whole story — the true story — with Biblical accuracy.
The actors themselves understand that it's the fact-based, but heartfelt story line that keeps viewers interested. Noah James — who plays Andrew — told Woman’s World on the teal carpet, "The reason the show is so popular is because it's so focused on authenticity."
The Chosen
“We want to make sure that you feel like what it would be like to live 2000 years ago," James says. "What it would be like to be oppressed by Rome, not be able to pay your taxes, what would my family look like back then, what would it look like if you didn't have enough food to eat, or you're pitching your own tent — what would following Jesus really look like?"
However, knowing that The Chosen's story will stay true to Scriptures is actually a caution of what is to come for viewers.
“Hopefully, everyone’s been warned,” says Elizabeth Tabish, who portrays Mary Magdalene. “It’s a really painful season; there’s a lot of grief in this season. I think about it all the time. I realized after each season’s finished filming, Oh, there’s more, and it gets harder; it’s going to get harder and more painful.”
The Chosen
Despite these emotional moments, the show has been cathartic for viewers and actors alike. “I was going through a depression before I booked the show,” Tabish says. “I don’t think I would have booked this role had I not experienced that and felt that. I’m constantly surprised by these gifts that come from pain. And these wonderful things that come from really difficult experiences.”
The Chosen lifting up women
The Chosen
Tabish also told Woman’s World at the premiere, “In the Bible, there isn't a lot of detail about the women that follow Jesus, but Dallas has fleshed out these real people. These real women. They're not one-dimensional, they're real people. They're not all just wives or mothers. They're business women and entrepreneurs, and they're really intelligent, thoughtful, emotional and vulnerable."
Credit: 'The Chosen' Press Center
Tabish continues, "There's so many people that put so much love, effort and talent into this thing. These are really meaningful stories of hope and of redemption. I think the world is needing that and looking for it and it's a privilege to be able to give that to people and to be a part of it."
Tabish remains hopeful of the shows impact on the world through the character of Jesus. She says, “The relief that comes from Jesus, the peace that comes with that, there is light to the dark, that there’s purpose in all of these things.”
Preparing our hearts for what's to come
“There's some extreme pain and sadness that's coming soon in future seasons. And of course, there's also extreme joy that's coming. But on the way there, Jesus is getting increasingly sad because of the fact that things are getting increasingly heavy," Jenkins said.
The shortest verse in the Bible is John 11:35 — “Jesus wept.” And, Jenkins says, "That happens in season 4, and it happens more than once. Now, I will say also there's lots of joy, there's lots of laughter, there's lots of miracles that we get to experience — which is one of the reasons why we want people to see this on the big screen and see this together.”
How to watch The Chosen season 4 premiere
In theaters: Episodes 1-3 air on February 1st, episodes 4-6 on February 15th and episodes 7-8 on February 29th. Get tickets here. There will be a 5-minute intermission during Episodes 1-3 and Episodes 4-6. Stretch your legs, hit the restroom, refill your popcorn. You’ll have a chance to step out of the theater without missing a beat. However, Episodes 7-8 will not have an intermission as it’s only the two episodes and we know you’ll be on the edge of your seat right to the finish!
At home: Season 4 will be available for free in The Chosen app or website after it debuts in theaters.
How to watch Seasons 1-3: Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, Netflix, Roku, and BYUtv.
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