Season 4 is ‘the most challenging to take in emotionally,’ ‘The Chosen’ actor who plays Andrew says
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Creator of “The Chosen,” Dallas Jenkins, has referred to the show’s upcoming Season 4 as “our most emotionally challenging season.” As the program moves closer to the crucifixion in Season 6, the characters are beginning to realize Jesus’ fate.
Noah James, who plays the disciple Andrew on the show, echoed this sentiment in an interview with the Deseret News on Wednesday.
“It will be the most challenging (season) to take in emotionally,” James said.
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Something James thinks the show does well is give space for introspection. “People can look at their lives and say, ‘Maybe I’m not handling things the way I should be handling them’ or ‘How do I deal with questioning or issues of faith or issues of interpersonal relationships?’”
For people who haven’t done yet that while watching the show, James described this season as “a punch in the face.”
James didn’t give any spoilers, but he did give a heads-up for what fans could look forward to seeing with his character Andrew.
“It became apparent to me that Andrew is going through a lot of growth this season,” James said. He indicated that part of this growth is understanding the teachings of John the Baptist and Jesus. This kind of growth will take time for Andrew in the show.
“You know, knowing where we go as characters, wanting to find little moments of almost like putting down the railroad tracks, so you can go ah, yeah. That moment was a moment where he maybe realized ‘I need to act a little more adult per se,’” James said. His character goes through a lot emotionally in Season 4, and there was a lot James could relate to.
Growing up is “a bittersweet feeling” for James. He observed that sometimes people develop feelings of “coldness” as they age, but he said it doesn’t have to be that way.
“You know, you don’t have to dull your emotions or senses just to grow up,” James said.
There was one moment in particular during filming that James told me impacted him.
The cast and crew set out to film a challenging miracle scene. “And before we begin, the wind sweeps up and leaves dust, and everything becomes this mini whirlwind around us. ... The synchronicity was impossible to ignore,” he said.
This special moment was one that the cast and crew know about, but the audience doesn’t necessarily see on screen. “That was something that I won’t forget as I witness the scene” when it comes out, James said.
There’s a question James thinks the season asks: “Are you ready to take this journey with us?”
“Because we all know where it ends,” James said. “This, in some ways, feels like the beginning of the end.”
The end of Season 4 will put the show much closer to the events precipitating the crucifixion, like Jesus’ trial, the Garden of Gethsemane and Judas betraying Jesus. These moments are some of the most emotional parts of the New Testament.
The audience will have to wait and see how Jenkins handles them throughout the rest of the series.
As the show accrues more viewers, James is expected to see how “The Chosen” fandom compromised of dozens of social media accounts has unfolded.
“It’s really fun to see how much even just creativity people are putting into it and spending time, you know, joking about it, thinking about it,” he said.
But another part of it is surreal to him.
For him, it’s “strange” to be eating his breakfast and see his face splashed across YouTube. Or when he walks down the street and people recognize him. He loves being able to make someone’s day, but he said it’s “such a funny thing to try to reconcile in normal life.”
Still, it’s heartwarming when James sees how the show has impacted so many fans’ lives. When he attended “The Chosen” convention earlier this fall, many fans told him that the show helped them in difficult moments of their lives.
“So, if the show can be even a tiny light in someone’s life who is going through an unbearable moment, I can’t ask for anything more than that,” James told me. “That to me just means the whole world.”
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When is Season 4 of ‘The Chosen’ coming out?
Season 4 of “The Chosen” will be coming out in theaters starting Feb. 1. Here’s a closer look at the release schedule:
Episodes 1 to 3: Feb. 1.
Episodes 4 to 6: Feb. 15.
Episodes 7 to 8: Feb. 29.
