‘The Chosen’: Record-breaking TV series about Jesus debuts worldwide
A first-ever multiseason show about Jesus, "The Chosen: Season One," is now available to stream worldwide just in time for the holidays.
Released by VidAngel, a streaming company that allows users to filter language, nudity and other content from mainstream entertainment, the show is available to stream simultaneously in every country on The Chosen app and their site, Vidangel.com. The inspiring series has already been downloaded and streamed in 142 countries.
At the top of the year, “The Chosen” became the No. 1 crowdfunded media project in history, raising over $11 million from more than 16,000 investors who wanted to see season one made. The idea to crowdfund the project was presented to filmmaker Dallas Jenkins after he produced a short film for his church called “The Shepherd,” which is about the birth of Christ from the perspective of the shepherds.
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“When the idea was offered to use ["The Shepherd"] to raise crowdfunding for this series, I laughed. And I thought, ‘That's ridiculous. That'll never work.’ But I was in that place in my life where I was thinking, it's not my job to feed the 5,000,” Jenkins told The Christian Post during a set visit in Dallas, Texas, while episodes one through four were in production.
Season one is now complete and features eight episodes that tell Bible inspired stories about the life of Christ from the perspective of those around Him.
"I'm trying to justify the faith of those who invested in this project and I'm also trying to, of course, please my Savior, and make sure that we're doing this project for Him,” Jenkins told CP of his motivation to continue to make the series.
The filmmaker now hopes people will "Pay It Forward" and donate to ensure others around the world can also watch the series.
Lead actor of “The Chosen,” Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus, told Fox News that he hopes to continue to portray Christ for more seasons to come.
"Playing the role of Jesus Christ is the pre-eminent honor, not only of my career but of my life," Roumie said. "With this series, we're afforded the opportunity to take our time with the greatest story ever told and savor it."
The news publication reported that the series looks "to make 'The Chosen' bigger than the 'Game of Thrones' billion-view record" and "the most-watched global series in history.”
