A special holiday episode of “The Chosen” is succeeding in movie theaters.
Fans of the television series made “Christmas With the Chosen: The Messengers” the No. 2 movie at the box office on Wednesday.
The episode, which depicts the birth of Jesus Christ from the perspectives of Mary and Joseph and is intended as a Christmas gift for fans of the TV show, has earned $11.4 million in sales worldwide since opening in movie theaters across the nation on Dec. 1.
“The Messengers” was the fourth highest-earning film in the United States last weekend behind “Encanto,” “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” and “House of Gucci,” according to Boxofficemojo.com.
The impressive response to the holiday special was gratifying for Dallas Jenkins, the creator, writer, director and executive producer of “The Chosen” series.
Young mother Mary, played by Sara Anne, holds baby Jesus as Joseph, played by Raja Bond watches in a scene of “Christmas With the Chosen: The Messengers.”
Alvaro Aguayo
“‘The Chosen’ was birthed from my biggest career failure when few people showed up in theaters for my previous film,” Jenkins said in a news release. “To sit in a theater full of people clapping and crying for Christmas music with an episode of a TV show about Jesus was an overwhelming experience.”
“Christmas With the Chosen: The Messengers,” which also features a lineup of Christian music artists, will be in more than 1,700 theaters until Dec. 16, according to fathomevents.com.
Despite becoming a box-office hit, Jenkins told CBN’s “The PrayerLink” he isn’t focused on the numbers as the true mark of success.
“For me, it’s about impact and seeing what God is doing,” Jenkins told CBN. “God has something to say and I’m just wanting to be a part of it. ... People just seem to be responding to what God is saying and I’m just lucky to be a steward of it.”
The Christmas special was an effort to satisfy fans wanting more content and help bring people back to the movie theaters, Jenkins told the Deseret News before the premiere.
“It’s the first chance ‘Chosen’ fans have had to gather all over the country, so we intend to make it worth it,” Jenkins said.
“The first question everyone asks me is ‘When is Season 3 coming out?’ They are just desperate for more content. The fact that we’re actually doing a new episode for this Christmas special, I think will send them through the roof and tide them over until Season 3.”
Learn more about “The Chosen” Christmas special at Thechosen.tv/Christmas.
“The Messengers” comes on the heels of a successful Season 2, which was completed last spring with parts filmed in Utah. “The Chosen” series has been viewed more than 200 million times and translated into 50 different languages.
The faith-based streaming show, which portrays the life and times of Jesus Christ, released its first season in 2019 and is one of the highest crowdfunded media projects in history.