The Chosen television series may be swapping its series format for a movie in the future according to a new update.
The popular Christian drama series created by Dallas Jenkins is no stranger to the big screen.
After The Chosen's Christmas specials and select Season 3 episodes were shown in theaters, the series released all eight episodes of The Chosen Season 4 in theaters prior to streaming.
But for a certain upcoming Biblical event, The Chosen's creator may have intentions of forgoing the television format altogether in favor of a feature film.
[ Full Cast of The Chosen Season 4 - Every Main Character & Actor Who Appears (Photos) ]
Is The Chosen Getting a Movie?
Speaking with Newsweek, The Chosen's Dallas Jenkins provided an update about future plans for the show, including making a Resurrection movie.
According to Jenkins, The Chosen's sixth season will focus on Christ's Crucifixion, but not the Resurrection. The latter event will either be shown in the following season or, potentially, in "a feature film:"
"We're hoping also to potentially do a feature film within that whole storyline, so we've got some plans for that that we're developing now."
Expected to star Jonathan Roumie as Jesus and other reoccurring stars, the earliest fans could expect this prospective film is three years from now as Season 6 is slated to release within two years.
As for Mel Gibson's upcoming Resurrection film, Jenkins dismissed any rumors about a team-up between the two but acknowledged that "Many people have wanted us to connect because we're the directors of big Bible projects."
As for what makes Jenkins' Biblical narrative different from its predecessors and how The Chosen's Resurrection film could differ, the showrunner told CBN that other movies try "to cover a lot of ground in an hour-and-a-half" and usually "from Jesus' perspective:"
“So many of those movies are limited, because they just go from Bible verse to Bible verse and are trying to cover a lot of ground in an hour-and-a-half, and they usually do it from Jesus’ perspective. You’ve got these miracles and life changing events taking place with characters that you haven’t spent any time getting to know. I thought if we can encounter Jesus through the eyes of those who actually met Him, we could perhaps be impacted in the same way they were.”
But again, regardless of Jenkins' promising update, The Chosen's Resurrection movie isn't a done deal.
Not only does the series have two seasons to go, but Season 4 is still playing in theaters and has yet to be released on streaming.
No doubt both its theatrical and home release reception will contribute to further big-screen decision-making.
The showrunner actually said as much back in a 2023 Instagram video (via Deseret News) where he encouraged audiences to see The Chosen in theaters, saying, “These things need to be successful so we can do more of them:"
"These things need to be successful so we can do more of them... Look, this is a challenging thing: taking the stories of the Bible and putting them on film in unique ways. As you know, I can speak from experience: it is not easy. And it is not easy to face criticism from people who haven’t seen it or who saw one clip and just wrote it off altogether.”
Still, given the series' success thus far, it wouldn't be surprising if The Chosen adopted a new format for the Biblical Resurrection.
Movies are what Dallas Jenkins claims he originally felt called to make, even though he initially rejected that call because, as he explained to Eternity, "Christian movies are so bad:"
“In my mind, I was thinking, 'No. Christian movies are so bad.' And I felt like he was saying, 'So make them good. My people deserve good movies, too.'”
[ The Chosen Season 4 Episode 3 Scene Controversy Explained ]
The Chosen and Mel Gibson's Resurrection Movies
While Dallas Jenkins' latest comments were an update, not a confirmation, a Resurrection movie has the potential to be a box office hit.
A new and shorter format is likely to broaden its audience, and fans will want to see what's expected to be The Chosen's finale.
The big question is whether The Chosen's movie will have company when it debuts. Or if it will be the second Resurrection movie to hit the big screen.
In 2023, Gibson revealed to ComingSoon that he has two scripts for his Resurrection movie, one of which involves "hell" and "watching the angels fall."
Whether the same kind of imagery is what The Chosen intends to show is unknown but could make for two different interpretations for audiences to compare in 2027.
The Chosen Season 4 is now playing in theaters. Season 4's streaming release date is currently unknown.
