Following the theatrical release of “The Chosen: Last Supper‚" creator Dallas Jenkins responded to several recurring fan questions about the series’ recently released fifth season.
During a Sunday night livestream, Jenkins said the questions he has received about the creative direction of Season 5 are “more complex” than questions about previous seasons.
Before diving into questions, Jenkins reminded fans “The Chosen” is an artistic take on events recorded in the Bible.
“I just want to remind you — and I’m saying this lovingly and respectfully, so this isn’t a corrective — but (‘The Chosen’) is art. It’s not just a Bible reenactment. You have seen that before. There are plenty of movies and mini series that just did a verse by verse reenactment of Scripture. That’s not this show. That’s never been this show,” Jenkins said.
He continued, “If you want the blow by blow account in order, in a linear, straightforward fashion...I would encourage you read the Bible. I mean, obviously, that’s the ultimate source of how this plays out in order and in a very straightforward, linear way.”
Jenkins noted that while Season 5 is the “most biblical season” yet, it is also a “little bit more artistic” than previous seasons in the hopes it will engage viewers on a deeper level.
“I just ask that you have a little bit of patience and grace as you watch this and know that things will unfold and make sense over time,” Jenkins said. “I just hope that that’s how you’ll watch our show as an engaged viewer — not necessarily expecting that everything is going to be linear, straightforward, easily and immediately comprehended all the way to its end."
Jenkins selected and answered several fan questions which he believes represent the most common insights from fans about the show’s newest season. Here are some of the highlights from the Q&A livestream.
Spoiler warning: “The Chosen” Season 5 spoilers ahead
Jesus’ dialogue in Gethsemane
The fan question: “Why did the writers give Jesus so little dialogue in the Garden scene?”
Jenkins acknowledged that Jesus does not have a lot of dialogue during the Garden of Gethsemane scene, but he said there is “much more” dialogue in the series than what is recorded in the Bible.
“I just thought artistically, this was a time for us to be with Jesus,” Jenkins said. “We wanted to just spend time and not rush this, and just let you feel the pain that he‘s feeling, the agony in the Garden.”
Watching the last supper scene in order
The fan question: “Can we get a cut of the last supper scenes spliced together in sequential order?”
Scenes from the last supper are shown in non-sequential order throughout “The Chosen” Season 5. It was an “artistic choice” to portray the last supper in a non-linear format, Jenkins said.
“We did this artistically and spiritually in a way that would hopefully and cause you to engage a little bit more with it, to see it from a fresh perspective,” Jenkins said. “So to just kind of redo it or to show it to you in a different way is not how I as the artist, and Tyler (Thompson) and Ryan (Swanson) my co writers wanted to have this play out.”
Jenkins added that the Bible is the best place to go for those who want to experience the last supper portrayed in sequential order.
Disciple flashbacks
The fan question: “Was it tradition or are there writings that point to the beginnings of each of the disciples?...I really liked that part where they each remembered back to who they were before Christ.”
In Season 5, Jesus’ disciples experience flashbacks, an addition Jenkins made to show how each of the apostles “gave something up significant to follow Jesus.” These scenes were “very intentional” and not simply added as “filler,” Jenkins noted.
“The Last Supper is about remembrance. So they would be remembering back to the time that they encountered Jesus,” Jenkins said. “I think that was actually very, very relevant to what was taking place in that moment...which is extremely painful, the cost of discipleship, the cost of following, the desire to surrender.”
Joseph’s visit
Another common fan question, per Jenkins: “There‘s been a common question about Joseph visiting Jesus...Why didn’t they send an Angel? Why did they send Joseph?”
While in the Garden of Gethsemane, “The Chosen” depicts Jesus receiving a visit from his earthly father, Joseph.
The Bible says Jesus was comforted by angels in the Garden of Gethsemane, but no record says Joseph made a visit. Still, it was a scene Jenkins “thought was powerful.”
“It’s just something that we thought artistically, spiritually, would have been a beautiful opportunity and a beautiful moment for Jesus to be comforted by his earthly father,” Jenkins said. “I am not saying that Joseph is an angel.”
He continued, “I think it’s something that would have been comforting to Jesus in that moment.”