Zachary Levi says he has felt “attracted” to the Old Testament story of David since childhood for its deeply human nature — and now he’s returning to that scripture as host of “David: King of Israel,” on Fox Nation.
Growing up in a Christian home, Levi was exposed to Bible stories from an early age, but David’s story stood out for its “powerful” and accessible themes, which he could connect with even as a child.
While Levi described Jesus’ story as the most meaningful in scripture, he said that Jesus’ perfection can make him difficult to relate to, as opposed to David, who made very human mistakes.
“As humans, we struggle in our flesh, we struggle in our ego, we struggle in our lusts and desires and all of these things,” he continued.
“David was more human (than Jesus), more fallible, more like us. And still, even despite all of that, he had redemption and maintained his heart for God. And so I just have always found that to be such an incredible story and a powerful story.”
Levi — known for his roles in the TV show “Chuck,” the “Shazam” movies and “Tangled” — previously ventured into roles with a faith or Christian element with “American Underdog,” “Sarah’s Oil,” “The Unbreakable Boy” and “The Star.”
The four-part miniseries, which blends documentary and docudrama, offers a raw, comprehensive look at the biblical figure from shepherd boy to king, chronicling his courage, brutality, passion, mistakes and journey to redemption.
With Levi serving as narrator, the documentary mixes screen reenactments with insights from biblical and historical experts.
While immersed in the project, Levi said there were no particular moments that transformed his faith, but he described it as being “stretched and challenged every day.”
“That’s kind of part of the nature of faith — it’s to believe in that which you cannot taste or touch or see or prove outside of what you feel inside,” he said.
“We must die to our own flesh daily, we must recognize that the ego and survival and all of these things that are very intrinsic to the human condition, you must battle against those things, because it’s easy to fall into that. It’s easy to fall into worry and anxiety and anger, and particularly in the world that we’re living in right now.”
According to Levi, the series still holds value for viewers without a faith background or who are unfamiliar with the Old Testament story of David.
He emphasized that the series offers more than entertainment, noting, “So long as you’re willing to at least recognize that there’s some historic value to these stories, that they’re not just mythology, that there were real people.”
“There’s still archaeologists and historians who recognize that there is historical fact that backs up a lot of this,” Levi continued. “Even just to watch it from that point of view — I think it’s fascinating. This is a part of our history, collectively as human beings, and I think all of that’s important.”
Even for those without a faith or historical connection, Levi said viewers can enjoy the series as a “pretty cool epic drama, like ‘Game of Thrones’ ... with witches and giants and all kinds of stuff that you would normally find in fantasy writing, like ‘Lord of the Rings’ — but this is in the Bible.”
When does ‘David: King of Israel’ come out?
“David: King of Israel” premieres on Thursday, Feb. 26, on Fox Nation. New installments of the four-part documentary will debut weekly on Thursdays and stream exclusively on the platform.