a bit of a confession: i came late to the chosen.
when i was invited last spring to visit the set of the chosen, outside of dallas, texas, i was still working my way through the first season of the series.
for the past few months, however, it’s become something of a comfort blanket before bed. even just putting it on for 15 or 30 minutes at a time, i’ve found the stories thoughtfully captured in a way that I’ve appreciated returning to.
which has made it fun to return to this memory of visiting the set around this time last year, in production for season four at the time, alongside other journalists from around the country and even around the world.
we toured the set—impressive in its scope and detail—took a horseback ride through the texas landscape, i met some new friends, and interviewed a series of producers, directors, and actors alike.
part of this conversation appeared in a piece i wrote for christianity today: “Appreciating The Art of Divine Surprise.” given the release of season 4, i thought i’d share these video interviews with you. you can click on any of the photos, below, to watch the full conversation.
to start, here’s a look at my conversation with dallas jenkins, writer and director for the chosen.
“what a great question, and that’s the first time I’ve ever been asked it,” jenkins replied when asked how he honors the role of surprise inherent to these gospel stories, given how familiar viewers are with their characters and narratives.
“that is one of the biggest tricks of the whole show,” jenkins said. “how do we make this feel like you’re seeing it for the first time?”
sitting down with lara silva and vanessa benavente, who play mary and eden on the show, respectively, we discussed the prominent role of women’s voices on the chosen, how the show managed to pull off a believable mother-son relationship on-camera, and the show’s portrayal of grief and its relationship with hope.
“it gave the storyline for women to be brave, to share their stories, and i think it helped people realize how much we can be there for each other,” lara shared of her experience portraying grief on season 3 of the chosen.
yasmine al-bustami, who plays ramah on the series, and i connected on our shared appreciation for cole haan shoes (honestly, the most comfortable I’ve ever owned) before talking about her surprise of playing a woman in a historical series who’s spunky, independent, and has personality, and more. this conversation was a lot of fun.
“not everyone who knew [Jesus] liked him,” actor brandon potter shared when asked to describe his character, quintus, a roman praetor, on the chosen.
how does one pull off a character typically considered a villain with some level of humanity?
“in this case it means waking up everyday thinking, i’m bringing order to people’s lives. i’m going to do good for the roman empire. and this pesky Jesus character keeps threatening the order.”
another central theme in the gospel stories is the relationship between insiders and outsiders, and the blurred lines between the two. we discussed how the series portrays those blurred lines in this conversation in a way i really appreciated.
“we see the permeability of that line, in terms of insider and outsider, in this show quite a bit. there are more crossings of those lines. that permeability is explored in this season.”
“that willingness to change comes from a working relationship,” actor kirk wolier shared when asked to describe the changes and development in his character, gaius, over the course of the series—particularly after overhearing Jesus’ sermon on the mount.
“we’ve been working together for 23 years… I always wanted to bring that reality to my relationship with matthew.”
kirk also discusses the choice to portray Matthew’s character as autistic, and the personal reason behind that creative decision.
we concluded this conversation with a reflection on his timely hopes for the show.
“i want to treat everyone with love and respect. and if the show can do that, that’s a huge win. that’s beyond the world of television and film. now we’re entering the world of goodness.”
hope you enjoy these conversations, friends. it’s a pleasure to share them.
hands&feet 