Season one of the dramatic series about the life of Christ has already gone global.
The Chosen, which released the final four episodes of its first season in November, seems to be spreading like wildfire. According to a social media post from the creators, the show's recently launched app has been downloaded 500,000 times in more than 180 countries; in an effort to keep up with that global demand, they are translating it into 74 languages.
Wow, that is something else and it makes their ambitious target of one billion views over the seven or eight season life of the show seem less fanciful than it otherwise would at first glance. Remember, this program is the number one crowdfunded media project ever, having brought in more than $10 million. That money all went into production, post production, marketing, et cetera, for season one. So where do the filmmakers go from here?
Just after the New Year, Dallas Jenkins - creator and director of The Chosen - put out a status report to investors giving some broad outlines. He stated he would "love to release at least the next four episodes by Thanksgiving, if not the complete season." That sounds doable, if not easy.
The good news is that, thanks to sales of show merchandise, they have enough funding to start writing season two, a process that began a month ago. Less good, however, is the fact that they need an additional $10 million to actually shoot and edit the expected eight episodes. Jenkins says another crowdfunding campaign is a possible mechanism to generate those funds, but added the primary hope is that their "Pay It Forward" campaign, which allows for overseas viewers to watch free of charge - and which we wrote about here - will cover those costs.
Sales of the first season will help, too, and you can buy the show's inaugural eight episodes via this link to the website. You can also download the The Chosen app from the Google Play and Apple's App Store as an alternative means of viewing.
Dallas Jenkins concluded his note by saying the next few months should clarify what 2020 holds for season two of the program. Christian Film Blog will follow developments and keep you posted.