The series about the life of Christ is currently in production on season three and aiming to put it out before the end of this year.
Having shot much of season three in Texas earlier this summer, cast and crew of The Chosen are currently in Utah, filming scenes at a first-century Jerusalem set. Show creator and director Dallas Jenkins took time out last night for a livestream to update fans of the show on where things stand.
He mentioned that the first of the eight episodes is now picture-locked, meaning the initial stage of editing is done and the installment looks basically like it will once it is finished: things like audio, color correction, et cetera, must still be completed. And he shared a scene from that episode, featuring a flashback of the Matthew character experiencing a fracture in his relationship with his parents because of his collaboration as a tax collector for the Romans.
The biggest news from Jenkins, however, has to do with the release of the coming season. The current plans, if they pan out, will make for a departure from past precedent when it was all rolled out online.
"We are on track right now - and I'm not promising you that this is going to happen, I'm just hoping that it happens - but we are on track to release episodes one and two together as a theatrical release in November."
The director, who is a committed Christian, added that "maybe, just maybe" another one will hit theaters as well since the episodes are, quote, "so big they belong on the big screen." Everything else will likely then be released online one-per-week thereafter; those first two episodes will almost assuredly end up online as well at some point - and free to view - in keeping with the past approach of the show, though Jenkins did not mention that specifically.
The Chosen has experience going the theatrical route, having released last year's Christmas special on the silver screen with tremendous success: it set a box office record for distributor Fathom Events, as Christian Film Blog reported at the time.
Other news-worthy tidbits from Jenkins include some of the things to be covered in season three: it will be bookended by Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in episode 1 and His miraculous feeding of the 5,000 in episode 8, and it will also feature a scene of John the Baptist in prison meeting with his erstwhile disciple Andrew, who became one of the 12 Apostles of Christ.
The livestream also contains a documentary focused on a group of young adults brought together by filmmakers to binge watch season one. Their take on the program is a window onto so-called Gen-Z, a group Jenkins hopes to draw into the audience more going forward. You can watch that and the entire livestream below.