“I couldn’t believe Dallas got away with putting that in there. I couldn’t stop laughing that whole scene,” said another fan. “I mean, way to be real! I appreciated it, and they did have it be discreet enough that if people don’t want to think it, then they can assume it’s something else, but man, I couldn’t stop laughing.”
Another person said she appreciated how the scene illustrated the men’s “humanity.”
One fan implied that “The Chosen” had already ventured into this territory when it previously told the story of the woman with the issue of blood. Another said, “I find it surprising that so many are upset about the reference to nocturnal seminal emissions, but no one seems bothered by the blatant reference to menstruation in the same scene.”
Jenkins offered his explanation of the scene in response to a fan who asked, “What did the allusion to John recently having had a wet dream bring to the story? Not mad, but it was like ‘did they really just do that lol.’”
Regarding the show’s point about purity, Jenkins said that the view of the Jewish leader “is a precursor to the true purity that is coming. Jesus is going to soon show what holiness and purity looks like, and it’s not checking purity boxes.”
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Another purpose of the scene was to serve the plot by providing a reason for John and Malchus to have a conversation alone together. “It’s the kind of thing that would quickly bond two strangers,” Jenkins said. “If you’ve ever been at a hospital or a DMV or whatever, and you and another stranger have the same issue or fear…there’s an instant bond.”
The director also pointed out, “It’s funny.”
“Some might find it a little awkward or not something to discuss in mixed company, but it’s not immoral or titillating,” he said. “And it’s a mildly amusing and surprising moment, and our job is to make a show with all the elements of entertainment. It fits our four distinctives: authentic, intimate, playful, disruptive.”
