‘The Chosen’ Earns Rare Waiver To Keep Filming Despite SAG-AFTRA Strike: “God’s Work”

The Chosen, a series surrounding the life of Jesus Christ, is the first TV program to be granted an exemption waiver to continue filming its fourth season amid the SAG-AFTRA strike.

The Chosen is produced by Angel Studios, an independent studio that has been receiving a lot of buzz for its recent film Sound of Freedom. The series has released three seasons, and its rights were acquired by The CW last month.

For its fans, this may appear as a miracle from the heavens. However, its fans “pour[ed] $40 million and counting into its production budget” in 2021, according to the Wall Street Journal. Its crowdsourced funding and independent production are primarily what granted the show the exemption, per Deadline. On the eve of the strike (July 13), Dallas Jenkins, the series’ showrunner, took the show’s official Twitter and posted the following update:

Important update from Dallas on the Screen Actor’s Guild strike, which starts tonight:
Unfortunately, despite the requested work we did on our end, an exemption for us will not be granted in time to avoid a shutdown. We will do a little filming tomorrow of everything that (1/2)

— The Chosen (@thechosentv) July 14, 2023

doesn’t require our cast, and then we’ll wait and hope that either the strike ends (unlikely soon), or that we’re granted an exemption and can resume filming.
Yes, it’s upsetting and will cost time and money…but we bring our 5 loaves & 2 fish. God handles the rest.
Dallas (2/2)

— The Chosen (@thechosentv) July 14, 2023

The director also shared his cry for help on Instagram on Saturday (July 15), penning a letter to the union that outlines that they “fit all qualifications for an exemption” and only need two more weeks for production. “We’re the good guys; we’ve treated your actors well,” he wrote.

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A post shared by Dallas Jenkins (@dallas.jenkins)

Faithful followers flooded the post, tagging SAG-AFTRA’s Instagram account to bring attention to Jenkins’ plea.

As was noted in the A.V. Club‘s coverage, some fans became conspiratorial, such as Good Luck Charlie‘s Leigh Allyn Baker, who commented, “They. Don’t. Care. They did this to Family Camp as well during the pandemic. They don’t want Christian shows.” Others cited its religious foundations as its asset, deeming the show as “God’s work.”

Yesterday (July 16), the account shared, “Update: Great news! We just received word from SAG that we have been approved for a waiver. We’ll continue shooting on Monday.”

Today (July 17), the account tweeted: “To be clear: 1. We’ve agreed to all of SAG’s requests and their interim agreement. 2. Season 4 is entirely independent and 100% funded by donations” and “We appreciate all your prayers.”

Since the announcement, fans have been rejoicing with religious reasoning, commenting, “As my grandpa always said ‘The Lord will provide…‘” and “God was-is- and will always be in control!“

There is no set release date for the upcoming season, but it is slated to air some time in 2024. In the meantime, fans can watch the previous three seasons of The Chosen on Peacock.