Dallas Jenkins Among Hollywood’s Top 50 Most Influential Showrunners
By Movieguide® Contributor
Due to the unprecedented success of THE CHOSEN, creator and director Dallas Jenkins has been recognized as one of the most influential showrunners in all of Hollywood.
Every year, the Hollywood Reporter creates a list of the most influential showrunners in Hollywood, and Dallas Jenkins landed a spot within the top 15.
“The man behind THE CHOSEN may have launched his Bible series outside the system, but Hollywood has since swooped in. In fact, the most successful crowdfunded TV series of all time is now available not only on a cadre of independent apps – where it’s been watched 600 million-plus times – but also on Peacock, Amazon Prime Video and The CW,” the Hollywood Reporter said of Jenkins.
“A full-blown phenomenon in many corners of Christian culture, the faith-based drama created and directed by Jenkins has spawned best-selling books, DVDs and loads of merchandise…Lionsgate, which distributes THE CHOSEN globally, had already lined up the suddenly red-hot Christian filmmaker to adapt THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER for film,” the outlet continued.
Jenkins’ rise to the top is incredible, given that he was out of Hollywood just a few years ago. His project before THE CHOSEN ended in complete failure, leaving him all but ousted from the entertainment industry.
The movie, THE RESURRECTON OF GAVIN STONE, only earned $2.3 million at the box office.
Soon after, though, THE CHOSEN catapulted Jenkins to a level he could have never imagined.
“Well, this is lovely in The Hollywood Reporter,” he wrote of appearing on the list. “Appreciate the honor. Certainly cool to see projects like THE CHOSEN and BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER get some exposure in areas they normally wouldn’t.”
Despite the accolades for THE CHOSEN, Jenkins revealed that “all I care about is that if at the end of seven seasons, I kept my integrity, I was surrendered to God in the process, I was a good husband and father, I accurately, as well as I could, portrayed the character and intentions of Jesus in the Gospels, that’s success.”
Through THE CHOSEN, God has started a movement in Hollywood towards faith-based content. Angel Studios, for example, has found the freedom to fund many more faith-based projects, such as this year’s surprise hit, SOUND OF FREEDOM. Furthermore, larger studios are opening up faith-based branches to cater to this newly realized audience.
Movieguide® previously reported on Jenkins:
THE CHOSEN creator Dallas Jenkins recently recalled how he was inspired to persevere after a box-office flop left him with no directing future in Hollywood.
“I was home alone with my wife after the biggest disappointment of my career,” Jenkins said. “The movie that I’d made that had gotten Hollywood attention, distributed all over the country in theaters, completely bombed. I went in just a couple hours from being a director with a bright future to a director with no future.”
It was at this moment that the Lord showed up and gave Jenkins hope to continue forward, eventually resulting in the creation of THE CHOSEN.
“My wife felt like God was just laying it extremely powerfully on her heart – almost as clear as though it was an audible voice – to read the story of the feeding of the 5,000,” Jenkins recalled. “We had this phrase in our heads, too: impossible math.”
