THE CHOSEN Cast Dishes on Season 5
By Movieguide® Contributor
A new behind-the-scenes video gives fans a look at the upcoming fifth season of THE CHOSEN.
The video shows THE CHOSEN’s cast and crew during a rare six-day workweek as they film a large scene with all 12 disciples.
“In this show, we’ve got a lot more to keep track of than the average show,” THE CHOSEN’s creator, Dallas Jenkins, explained.
Austin Reed Alleman, who plays Nathaniel, said he enjoyed the scene — “Everyone has different perspectives, and I kind of love it…that’s what makes great writing and great drama and makes people want to follow these characters.”
While the disciples’ actors worked together on their scene, THE CHOSEN’s leading ladies — Elizabeth Tabish, Amy Bailey and Amber Shana Williams — were also enjoying their time together.
“For me, it feels like every scene is better and more intense and sort of overwhelming,” Tabish said.
Williams added, “I got to spend a lot of time with the girls this season. We get to see them interact a bit more, which we never got to see, and that felt nice because we keep each other laughing.”
THE CHOSEN’s fifth season will explore the prophecy that foretold Jesus’ presence on earth.
“There is a prophecy about the messiah. There’s a prophecy about specifically a colt, and so Jesus is making a statement by riding in on a donkey, He’s making an obvious statement of who He is,” Jenkins told Variety. “He is a fulfillment of a prophecy and for Jews at that time as you saw when Simon Zee [Alaa Safi] and Matthew go to get the donkey and they reference that scripture, and the guy’s like, ‘Oh, I get it. OK, this is for the Lord.’”
Jenkins continued, “And in fact, in the Season 5 premiere — I’ll just give you a little minor spoiler — but religious leaders confront Jesus as He’s about to enter the city, and they say: ‘Please don’t do this. It’s going to cause a lot of division, and it’s going to cause the Sanhedrin to act out against you.’ They’re like, ‘We know what you’re doing. By riding in on a donkey, referencing the prophecy, it couldn’t be more clear what you’re trying to say.’”
Reza Diako, who plays Philip, recently talked to Collider about his character’s journey as the show moves into Season 5.
“Season 5 was so different,” he explained. “Season 4, for me, is Philip being confronted with his old traumas. He’s kind of been in pursuit of a father figure in John the Baptist, so the death of the father has been a bit difficult. But in Season 5, he’s like, ‘Oh, okay. So I dealt with that pain, and now it’s time to celebrate this divine father when we arrive into the city.’”
Movieguide® previously reported on the upcoming season of THE CHOSEN:
THE CHOSEN Director Dallas Jenkins is eager for audiences to see Judas’ storyline play out in Season 5.
“I will have to admit that seeing Judas, and hopefully this isn’t a spoiler for too many people because they’ve read the Bible,” Jenkins said in a recent interview. “But what isn’t a spoiler is how it happens, who it impacts, and how the disciples wrestle with knowing that something bad is happening. Jesus outright told the disciples, ‘One of you will betray me.’”
“They didn’t have a hallway for it. They couldn’t understand it,” the director continued. “They couldn’t figure out who it might be.”
In Season 5, Jenkins explores why the other disciples never suspected Judas.
“How does this impact Judas? Judas probably had a family,” Jenkins said, noting that he touches on “sociopolitical dynamics.”
“So, who is it that Judas first approached specifically? The Romans? The religious leaders? How did this happen, and how did it happen underground? How did it happen without the disciples knowing?” he asked.
The “heartbreaking” scenes weren’t easy to film for the cast and crew but especially for Luke Dimyan, who plays Judas.
“The portrayal of that in Season 5 is exciting and heartbreaking,” Jenkins said. “How we portray scenes between Jesus and Judas when Jesus knows what’s coming. It’s been really fascinating to portray.”
