Why THE CHOSEN Looks Authentic

Published: July 23, 2025

Jonathan Roumie, THE CHOSEN press junket — Movieguide® Photo of Jonathan Roumie

By Michaela Gordoni

THE CHOSEN just gave fans a deep peek into its world of costume design.

“The number one word that informs everything we do is authenticity. And that is absolutely impossible if we don’t have an extraordinary team of artists whose primary mission is to transport you authentically to the first century,” Jenkins explained in a new CHOSEN YouTube video.

“A costume designer creates a world in which the actors can live in,” said THE CHOSEN’s costume designer, Leila Heise.

She displayed the breastplate of Aaron, which sits on a robe and is representative of the 12 tribes of Israel with 12 different stones on the plate. The bright robe’s furbelow also features dried pomegranates and bells.

“I love layers and textures. It’s visually interesting that way,” Heise said.

“I get the scripts. I read them,” she continued. “I do my notes and break them down, and then I have conversations with Dallas. Then I go back, and I do shopping, and I pick the fabrics that I want and build the costumes.”

“I do a lot of research. A lot. You can’t really go, ‘I’ll just look it up and see photos.’ You glean through art and pick and choose,” she told TV Insider last year.

Jesse, the cripple at the pool of Bethesda, wears a coat that’s actually made from an old, worn-out curtain.

“It was sun-bleached and distressed and just ratted and torn and we made it into a jacket for him,” Heise said.

The designer says she has a wonderful team. Her assistant, Lisa Odette Albertson, runs the principal department. They have to provide costumes for 135 speaking roles this year.

“There’s a few things that are very authentic…There’s a pin over here that’s an actual Roman pin that is holding Quintis’ [cape] together,” Heise said. “And there’s, you know, certain things like the ring that Atticus wears, is a one for the secret police, but we don’t stop building costumes.”

“Each one of our main principal people have to have at least four of each garment,” Heise continued. “And so we have to have at least 20 yards because we don’t know what they’re going to be doing during the course of [the show].”

Heise says she has to be ready for anything. She tries to express the character’s attributes through their clothes.

“That way you kind of know what they’re about even before they say anything…Philip likes to have a scarf or something that he can wrap around his head if he’s working around his wrist. It’s just a little character trait of his,” she explained.

“It is fun. There’s always new challenges every year. And I love getting people dressed up,” she said.

She says they come in their casual clothes, and then she transforms them with their new wardrobe.

She said, “I [say] ‘Okay, now take a look at yourself’ and they’re thrown back into the first century.”

Gaius actor Kirk B.R. Woller previously shared his appreciation for the costume team: “These ARTISTS are simply incredible… they bring such texture and authenticity to The Chosen world. Not to mention they are such kind and loving people!”