Courtesy of The Chosen – an Angel Original
Netflix has acquired the streaming rights to the first season of the popular historical drama series The Chosen, which recently began airing on The CW in the States.
Netflix US quietly picked up all eight episodes of the show’s first season on September 11, 2023 (it was added overnight in some territories). We say quietly because Netflix itself hasn’t promoted the addition of the series in any way. That’s not entirely unsurprising, given the subject matter. The same could be said for Jesus Revolution, for which Netflix acquired the first window rights earlier in the year.
The big-budget show (which was crowdfunded and has broken numerous records) was initially available on a dedicated website and app from VidAngel. It’s since rolled out on several streaming services, such as Prime Video. More recently, The CW picked up the broadcast rights.
Its addition to Netflix comes just a few months after Lionsgate took the worldwide rights to the show. Angel Studios licensed the series to Netflix, however, we’re told by a representative for the studio.
Created by Dallas Jenkins, the show seeks to retell the life of Jesus Christ, played by Jonathan Roumie. Shahar Isaac, Elizabeth Tabish, Paras Patel, and Noah James round out the cast.
Only season 1 was added to Netflix; it’s unclear whether seasons 2 and 3 or the Christmas special will be added further down the line. That first season was first released in 2019, with subsequent seasons released in 2021 and 2022.
Netflix has the show available with a slew of dubbing and subtitle options, including dubs for Spanish, French, German, Italian, Hindi, Arabic, Polish and Portuguese.
A fourth season is currently in development but has yet to be released. It initially stopped production due to the SAG-AFTRA strike but has been given a waiver to continue.
The Chosen is an independent production, although Angel Studios is notably attached to the project as a licensee. Angel Studios has become a notable Hollywood player in 2023 thanks to the unexpected box office smash The Sound of Freedom. Netflix was intrinsically linked to that movie over the summer when producers had noted that Netflix passed on the movie.
Courtesy of The Chosen – an Angel Original
Corrections: We previously referred to this as a series from Angel Studios. This is inaccurate, with the company only being a licensee of the show.
Will you be watching The Chosen on Netflix? Do you hope more seasons are on the way? Let us know in the comments.
