“The Chosen,” the crowd-funded TV series about the life of Jesus Christ that was partially produced in Utah, will make its network television debut next month — although the network is the low-rated The CW.
“The CW has always been bold and unique, which is perfect for us,” said Dallas Jenkins, the creator, director and producer of the series, in a statement announcing the deal.
Bold and unique? Really? Well, maybe it is sort of bold that the network that’s about to air “Fboy Island” and “Fgirl Island” is also going to air a series about Jesus. That’s certainly … non sequitur? Weird?
This is, without a doubt, a good deal for Jenkins, his production company and Lionsgate, which distributes the series. The CW purchased the rights to the three seasons produced to date, and will air episodes beginning Sunday, July 16, through Sunday, Dec. 24 — Christmas Eve. In Utah, The CW airs on KUCW-Channel 30.
(The fourth season is currently in production. A total of seven seasons are planned.)
Financial terms were not announced, but the episodes are already finished so there’s no additional cost to Jenkins. Whatever he’s getting from The CW is a bonus.
(The Chosen) Jonathan Roumie plays Jesus Christ in "The Chosen."
But it’s hardly a bold move by the network’s new owner, Nexstar, which has been anything but since it took control of The CW in August 2022. This deal fits the Nexstar pattern — buy cheap programming that’s already aired elsewhere instead of paying for high-priced original shows.
(The former owners of The CW — Paramount/CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery — sold 75% of the network to Nexstar in August 2022. Paramount and WBD, which each retained a 12.5% stake, turned over the other 75% to Nexstar, which reportedly assumed $100 million in debt.)
Nextar has promised it will make the network profitable by 2025, primarily by bringing down costs rather than driving up ratings and advertising revenue. Clearly, it didn’t pay big bucks for “The Chosen,” although, again, whatever it paid Jenkins & Co. is gravy.
The network’s announced fall schedule features several series that have already aired in Canada, a British import, an AMC castoff, and relatively cheap reality shows.
The network is holding over four scripted series from the previous regime: “Superman & Lois,” “Walker,” “All-American” and “All-American: Homecoming” — though “Superman & Lois” had its order cut to 10 episodes, and the other three had their orders cut to 13 episodes. Given the ongoing Writers Guild strike, it’s impossible to know when those shows might go back into production.
(By the way, when CW announced the renewal of “Superman & Lois” and “All-American: Homecoming” on Monday, it also announced it was canceling “Gotham Knights.”)
(The Chosen) Jesus (Jonathan Roumie) and Simon the Zealot (Alaa Safi) feed the 5,000 in a scene of Season Three of "The Chosen."
Brad Schwartz, The CW’s president of entertainment, said “The Chosen” has “already connected deeply with viewers around the world, and The CW will expand its audience even further.”
Probably, but not by much.
Although The CW is available in 98% of American homes that have a TV, it averaged just 548,000 viewers in prime time for the 2022-23 TV season, which ended in May. Recently, the network has averaged fewer than 300,000 viewers on some nights, fewer than 200,000 on others.
According to The CW and the show’s producers, “The Chosen” has already been seen by “over 110 million viewers in 175 countries.” And the weirdest part about The CW’s acquisition of the series is that it’s already so widely available. You can watch it for free on “The Chosen” app, on BYUtv, and episodes are or were available on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Peacock, UPtv, the Trinity Broadcasting Network and VidAngel (now Angel Studios). A few episodes have been screened in movie theaters.
According to The CW, it will air the series “for the first time on U.S. broadcast television,” which isn’t actually true. BYUtv airs on KBYU-Channel 11 in Utah and surrounding states.
This is, as far as I know, the first series that aired on BYUtv before it aired on a broadcast network … even though that broadcast network is just The CW.
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Season Two of "The Chosen" was filmed on the Jerusalem sets at the LDS Film Studios in Utah County.
‘Chosen’ controversies
To their credit, The CW programmers did not let a couple of “controversies” dissuade them from buying “The Chosen.”
• When word got around that the series was produced by “the Mormons,” an attempt was made to dissuade people from watching it. Even though the rumor is not true.
VidAngel, which helped bring the series to fruition, is located in Utah and its past and present leaders are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And Season Two was filmed on the Jerusalem set at the LDS Motion Picture Studios in Elberta, south of Utah Lake in Utah County. Which apparently led to the confusion and allegations that — gasp! — Mormons produced “The Chosen.”
Jenkins is an evangelical Christian.
By the way, there are constant complaints about the way “The Chosen” portrays some part of the scriptures ... because every church interprets the scriptures differently. Sigh.
• If that faux controversy wasn’t dumb enough, there was online outrage when people looking to be offended spotted a small gay pride flag in a promotional video for “The Chosen.” The flag belonged to a crew member; the show’s producers have not expressed support for or condemnation of the LGBTQ+ community.
I hate to break it to you, but probably every show you’ve ever watched has had cast or crew members who don’t agree with your personal views.
I loved Jenkins’ response: “I don’t believe personal workspaces on set are relevant to the content of ‘The Chosen,’ but if someone wants to stop watching a free show because of it, it’s their right.”
By the way, if you’re upset by the presence of a pride flag, you are a bigot.
There is some good news here: The homophobic blogger who demanded an explanation for why the pride flag was on set and is attempting to launch a boycott of “The Chosen” was apparently fired.
Editor’s note • This story is available to Salt Lake Tribune subscribers only. Thank you for supporting local journalism.
