Amazon Partners with Jon Erwin for Faith-Based Series HOUSE OF DAVID
By Movieguide® Contributor
Prime Video will produce faith-based content as the streaming service partners with Jon Erwin’s newly created Wonder Project to bring the studio’s first series, HOUSE OF DAVID, to life.
“HOUSE OF DAVID follows the once-mighty King Saul as he falls victim to his own pride,” the show’s logline reads. “A prophet prepares to overthrow him – anointing the outcast shepherd boy David as a second king. As Saul’s fury grows, David navigates love, violence and politics in the court of the very man he’s destined to replace. Two kings. One kingdom. The outcome is war.”
Though a secular company, Prime Video’s interest in faith-based content is understandable given the recent track record of Christian projects. THE CHOSEN and SOUND OF FREEDOM have both proven that there is a wide audience interest in faith-based projects that can provide blockbuster returns without a notable budget.
The recent success of faith-based content also encouraged Erwin to fulfill his dream of creating The Wonder Project. Propelled by the genre’s current popularity, The Wonder Project is a banner Erwin hopes will be an enduring name in entertainment that consistently delivers quality faith-based content.
“You just dream of the idea of could we have a studio of our own? If we could get enough money together that could give opportunity to the other creatives in the space and really set them free in a whole new way,” Erwin told Movieguide®.
“The dream is a values-based brand and ecosystem that is absolutely unafraid of Christianity and the American dream and that tells stories that restore faith in things worth believing in,” he added. “You know, stories that are intentionally designed to pull families back together.”
Erwin is not alone in this dream, and along with the backing from major Hollywood players, other entertainment giants are now committing themselves to furthering the reach of Christianity. One of those key players is Kelly Merryman Hoogstraten, a former executive at Netflix and YouTube.
“Our goal at The Wonder Project is to tell stories that restore faith in things worth believing in, and to do this at scale,” Hoogstraten said during the studio’s HOUSE OF DAVID announcement. “We’ve been blown away by Amazon’s commitment to help us do this – both through the significant resources they are dedicating and their trust in us to tell these stories authentically to our audience.”
“We are very excited about the scope, scale and storytelling involved with HOUSE OF DAVID,” Amazon MGM Studios’ head of TV Vernon Sanders added. “And [we] look forward to sharing this epic and many others with our global Prime Video customers.”
Movieguide® previously reported on The Wonder Project:
Director Jon Erwin shared his plans for a new faith-based movie studio that puts the power into the hands of the creatives rather than Hollywood executives.
“You just dream of the idea of could we have a studio of our own? If we could get enough money together that could give opportunity to the other creatives in the space and really set them free in a whole new way, like give them the resources and freedom to reach the audience that they’ve not had,” Erwin told Movieguide®. “Can we sort of declare independence in this industry and create a destination for the talent and the space to tell their stories?”
After directing many successful movies, including I CAN ONLY IMAGINE, I STILL BELIEVE, AMERICAN UNDERDOG and, most recently, JESUS REVOLUTION, Erwin has been given the resources to turn this dream into a reality.
He calls it the WONDER Project and hopes he can create a long-lasting legacy of faith-based content in Hollywood under this banner.
Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
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Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
