Dallas Jenkins Gives Streaming Date for ‘The Chosen,’ Season 4, Says Angel Studios Contract Is Terminated

Dallas Jenkins, creator, director and co-writer of “The Chosen,” announced Wednesday afternoon that fans will finally be able to watch Season 4 on streaming beginning this Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Jenkins also addressed the ongoing legal matters that have prevented the show’s release to streaming till now.

“I have some very important information about how we got to this situation, what you’ve heard or said that’s been wrong, and what all this means for the future of ‘The Chosen,’” Jenkins said in a video update.

‘The Chosen,’ Season 4, Starts Streaming Sunday

Season 4 of “The Chosen” broke ground earlier this year by being the first streaming TV show to be released in its entirety in theaters. Fans have been eagerly awaiting the season’s release to streaming platforms, an event that has been delayed due to “legal matters,” according to Jenkins.

Jenkins has emphasized to fans that he is doing his best to get the season to streaming as soon as possible. In an update on April 21, he projected that, “unless something goes awry,” Season 4 would come out in the next four to seven weeks. 

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In his Wednesday announcement, Jenkins said, “I am happy to tell you that Episode 1 of Season 4 will launch this Sunday at 7:00 Eastern Time, and as I’ve said, we will release two episodes per week.” Episode 2 will release Thursday, June 6, at 8:30 p.m. ET, and the rest of the season will release every Sunday and Thursday at those same times.

Jenkins went on to explain why there was a delay between the time Season 4 released in theaters and its release to streaming. He stated that he is giving “facts, not any mind-reading or accusations or hyperbole.”

The show’s creator recounted how “The Chosen” got its start in 2017 with the help of Angel Studios co-founders and brothers Neal and Jeffrey Harmon. The Harmons were sure “The Chosen” would be a “massive hit” and convinced Jenkins to try launching it through crowdfunding.

Jenkins expressed love and deep appreciation for the Harmons and said he wanted to “be clear: ‘The Chosen’ would not have launched without some of the ideas, initiatives and extraordinary efforts of the Harmon brothers and so many of the incredible employees at their company.”

One of the benefits of working with Angel, said Jenkins, was that he had “total creative freedom and ownership.” Among the challenges was “we were responsible for immeasurably more than any of us expected in order for this show to survive,” especially when they decided the show should be free.

Referring to the show’s “pay-it-forward” model, in which people could elect to donate money so that others could watch for free, Jenkins said that “less than half of it actually came to us.” The amount was The Chosen saw was about 40%, and the rest went to marketing and Angel Studios.

That situation would have been fine if “The Chosen” were a “one-off movie,” said the director, “but we were solely responsible for the financing of future seasons, as in, every dollar for production came from our side. Also, we had to form a company for all of this.”

Forming a company involves numerous expenses, not to mention the show’s international efforts, social media, livestreams, and marketing costs. “Because we are a free show, our direct relationship with you is the lifeblood of our survival,” said Jenkins, “and we had to finance and execute all of that relationship.”

The Chosen did so exclusively through gift sales, not the pay-it-forward money—but those involved still had to produce the actual show, which has an expanding budget with a cast and crew relying on it for their livelihoods.

“This show is year-round, every day, and not only am I the co-writer, director and producer of a big show but I am the cofounder, chief creative officer, and chairman of the board of our large company, as well as our livestreamer,” Jenkins said, pointing out that in a typical production, he would be able to focus exclusively on creating the show.

“We’ve had to do almost everything from scratch,” he said. “It simply wasn’t sustainable.”

The Chosen came to a new agreement with Angel in 2022, and part of that allowed them to shift toward a relationship with Come and See. The old Chosen app became the Angel app and The Chosen created a new app, solely dedicated to the show. Now, said Jenkins, 100% of donations to Come and See go to production, marketing, and international translations of the show, while gift sales and licenses with third parties will continue to sustain The Chosen as a company.

Under the 2022 contract, seasons of “The Chosen” were released on the Angel and Chosen apps before being released anywhere else.