Dallas Jenkins recently discussed how he handles criticism for his work on “The Chosen,” addressing controversies related to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) and the LGBTQ+ community. Jenkins also mentioned that the show is no longer partnered with Angel Studios.
“The LDS church is not an official endorser of the Chosen,” said Jenkins in a Feb. 27 interview with author and speaker Allen Parr. Not only has the show never “partnered formally” with the LDS church but also no LDS person has “input or influence on the content of the show. I make it very clear, it’s an evangelical show,” Jenkins said.
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Dallas Jenkins Shares Personal Struggles
Dallas Jenkins is creator, director, co-writer, and co-producer of “The Chosen,” a multi-season TV series on the life of Jesus. All eight episodes of Season 4 of “The Chosen” were released in theaters in the month of February, with the final two episodes in the season are currently running.
During his interview with Alan Parr, Jenkins shared how “The Chosen” came to be, how its content is created, and how it stays within the bounds of biblical theology. Parr asked Jenkins about how “The Chosen” is being used in people’s lives and the positive feedback he’s gotten.
The two men also spent some time discussing the negative feedback Jenkins has received. Jenkins said that the controversy over “The Chosen” supposedly having ties to the LDS church started a few years ago during a YouTube interview he gave. During that interview, he mentioned friends of his who were LDS and said they “love the same Jesus that I do.”
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Jenkins noted he was referring to particular individuals with whom he’d had “deep, intense, dozens of hours of conversations” and was not commenting on the LDS church or its official doctrine. “I think it’s dangerous to speak for any one particular group,” he said, noting that within any group, there will be people with differing beliefs.
Part of the controversy about the show’s supposed ties to the LDS church had to do with its connection to Angel Studios, whose co-founders are Latter-day Saints. The studio never had influence over the content of “The Chosen,” and Jenkins said Angel Studios is no longer a partner with the show.
