Speaker 1: Hi there. I am so excited about today's podcast. I
Speaker 1: can't even tell you. There are a few things I
Speaker 1: have done professionally that I am as excited about as
Speaker 1: our Love Someone with Delilah podcast today. It is an
Speaker 1: episode that is extra special and extra special treat for
Speaker 1: all of us. I was recently invited to join cast
Speaker 1: and crew of The Chosen, the multi season streaming TV
Speaker 1: series about the life of Jesus of Nazareth, and I
Speaker 1: got to go to their brand new home at the
Speaker 1: Salvation Army's camp in Texas. The set build was a
Speaker 1: huge undertaking, like huge, the landscape needed to believably represent
Speaker 1: Biblical locals such as the Feeding of the five thousand,
Speaker 1: while also housing auction facilities, a state of the art
Speaker 1: thirty thousand square foot sound stage, and an authentic first
Speaker 1: century city was built. The Biblical set covers two acres
Speaker 1: approximately two football fields side by side. It was unbelievable.
Speaker 1: I got to walk through the sets, I got to
Speaker 1: walk through the city. I got to see the amazing artwork,
Speaker 1: the tilework, the the research they did for every wall,
Speaker 1: every window was was unbelievable. I mean, they spent months
Speaker 1: researching everything they built. When filming is complete, the camp
Speaker 1: will be turned back over to the Salvation Army to
Speaker 1: use in their outreach with their children's camps. I got
Speaker 1: to see an experience at all me and my friend
Speaker 1: jan who is the one that introduced me to this
Speaker 1: show That Chosen. They've recently wrapped filming of season three
Speaker 1: of the seven that are planned. I was able to
Speaker 1: sit down and check at with Dallas Jenkins, the creator, director,
Speaker 1: and co writer of the series, as well as several
Speaker 1: cast members, including amber Shana Williams, who plays the beautiful,
Speaker 1: incredible Tamar Brandon Potter as the villain that we love
Speaker 1: to hate, Quintus oh Nn. He's a wonderful human being
Speaker 1: in real life, but he plays such a great villain.
Speaker 1: Quintus Giovanni Cairo, who portrays Thaddius Jordan's Walker Ross who
Speaker 1: is Little James, Laura Silva as Eden, and Elizabeth Tabish
Speaker 1: who shines as Mary Magdalene. I am so excited to
Speaker 1: share these conversations with you. I hope they inspire you
Speaker 1: to watch the series. I promise, I promise. I don't
Speaker 1: care what faith you are, what what your walk in
Speaker 1: life is. This show that The Chosen will touch your
Speaker 1: heart so many great stories. Let's check in with Dallas
Speaker 1: Jenkins first, right after I spend some time telling you
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Speaker 1: Love for percent off. I feel like we're old friends, Dallas,
Speaker 1: since I got to do a podcast with you in
Speaker 1: the past. But that was when The Chosen was just
Speaker 1: kind of in its infancy, before we were cool. Before
Speaker 1: well you were pretty cool. You were pretty cool. I mean,
Speaker 1: it was it was catching on. But now what a phenomenon,
Speaker 1: Dallas Jenkins, who is the creator of The Chosen. We're
Speaker 1: going into season three and you graciously invited us to
Speaker 1: your new home. This is amazing. Yeah, this is crazy
Speaker 1: and it's a it's a ride that I feel fortunate
Speaker 1: to be on. Uh and I've every day. It proves
Speaker 1: to me what I've said from the beginning, which is
Speaker 1: that I'm not good enough to to fulfill what this
Speaker 1: is being. But this has become it just gets bigger
Speaker 1: and better than I'm capable of which is scary and
Speaker 1: uh and comforting at the same time. When I first
Speaker 1: was introduced to you, my friend Jan introduced me to
Speaker 1: The Chosen and it was the beginning of COVID and
Speaker 1: she and her husband were the like the probably the
Speaker 1: first couple that paid it forward, you know, and they
Speaker 1: have been doing that since day one. She's like, you
Speaker 1: really get gotta get on board. You gotta watch this,
Speaker 1: you gotta talk about it on your show, you gotta
Speaker 1: get to know this. So the shutdown comes. I have
Speaker 1: nine people, my my youngest children, my husband, and my
Speaker 1: outlaws my former in laws were now my outlaws, and
Speaker 1: so I called Jan. I'm like, how do I find
Speaker 1: this show you're talking about? And it was so perfect
Speaker 1: and so powerful for my teenagers and my younger children
Speaker 1: to watch, for my husband and I for us to
Speaker 1: start some really important conversations. So that started that relationship
Speaker 1: that you created between Simon, Peter and Eden really started
Speaker 1: conversations with us that we're so impactful and so important.
Speaker 1: But when my kids started wanting to stay there at
Speaker 1: the end of the show and watch you talk about it.
Speaker 1: And these were in the early days when you're like,
Speaker 1: we just need to come up with enough money to
Speaker 1: make a costume. People, we don't really have a set
Speaker 1: kind of looking for a desert. And you were very transparent,
Speaker 1: very honest, and now to come here and see what
Speaker 1: God has done and how working with a salvation army
Speaker 1: mind blowing. Only God could do that. And I think
Speaker 1: you've pointed out the two primary things about the show
Speaker 1: that have brought it to where it is. One is
Speaker 1: the human relatability factor, which is I've I've seen all
Speaker 1: the Bible shows and movies ever made, and I've never
Speaker 1: seen a marriage portrayed as a real marriage. Just I
Speaker 1: can't even think of how many marriages I've seen portrayed.
Speaker 1: I mean, you just don't see that kind of stuff.
Speaker 1: And when you're able to go as especially especially in
Speaker 1: Christian or or or Biblical Bible era projects, you're thinking,
Speaker 1: when you're able to say those issues that they faced
Speaker 1: two thousand years ago are actually the same issues that
Speaker 1: I face, then you go, oh, maybe the solution to
Speaker 1: those issues, Jesus is the same solution that I can
Speaker 1: have today. Another thing you're bringing up is that crowdfunded,
Speaker 1: crowd related thing that we decided to do from the beginning,
Speaker 1: which is we're gonna be Authenter. We're gonna show you
Speaker 1: behind the curtain. You're going to be part of this,
Speaker 1: whether it's financially, prayer wise, or just a matter of
Speaker 1: knowing what we're doing so that you can spread the word.
Speaker 1: That has been an essential part of the Chosen from
Speaker 1: day one, and it has led to what we have
Speaker 1: now and what it's continuing to grow. The thing is, though,
Speaker 1: we have to remember we can ever lose that just
Speaker 1: because we now have this amazing set to you as well,
Speaker 1: that still has to be financed, that we still have
Speaker 1: to continue making episodes. We still don't have a big
Speaker 1: studio covering all the cost of everything. We still need
Speaker 1: to be reliant. Yes, sweet to know that it's it's
Speaker 1: all in God, and you've said that from the very beginning.
Speaker 1: It was God birth, that was God breathed, that's God funded.
Speaker 1: Um and and there's nobody you know, telling you the
Speaker 1: parameters outside of you and God. My responsibility is to
Speaker 1: Him and to my wife and uh and everything else
Speaker 1: is we we we we have the beauty of it
Speaker 1: is we have the freedom to control it and to
Speaker 1: do what it is we believe is best and what
Speaker 1: we believe God is leading us to do, and we're
Speaker 1: not bound by cancel culture. We're not bound by a
Speaker 1: studio having to fit us into some sort of slot.
Speaker 1: We get to do what we need to do and
Speaker 1: be audience dependent and God dependent as opposed to, uh,
Speaker 1: you know, an office that's deciding where we're going to
Speaker 1: go next. So one of the things that I love
Speaker 1: about The Chosen beyond um all those things you just
Speaker 1: meant mentioned, is the fact that in most uh biblical
Speaker 1: kind of productions, women take a back seat, not even
Speaker 1: a back seat. We're not even on the bus to
Speaker 1: get in the backseat, you know, except for you know,
Speaker 1: the production of Sampson and Delilah that was done Cecil
Speaker 1: and b the Mills I think years ago. There's no
Speaker 1: female characters that that really stand out or play a role.
Speaker 1: And from day one and the Chosen you focus on
Speaker 1: the women that God chose to surround his son. Yeah,
Speaker 1: we forget that. There's a very key verse or two
Speaker 1: in the Bible in the Gospels that talk about that
Speaker 1: Jesus didn't just have the twelve apostles. There were dozens
Speaker 1: and dozens of disciples that follow Jesus around, including a
Speaker 1: group of women who were essential to his ministry. It
Speaker 1: says they even helped finance his ministry. Mary Magdalen was
Speaker 1: a key point of of of multiple momentous moments of
Speaker 1: the Gospels. And so I don't think we're doing anything revolutionary.
Speaker 1: I don't think we're but you are revolutionary because the
Speaker 1: women have been there historically. Um. I like that you
Speaker 1: gave Needing a name, But but you are doing something
Speaker 1: revolutionary and that you are shining a spotlight on the
Speaker 1: importance of those relationships. I got a book years ago
Speaker 1: called Women in the Bible that tells the stories of
Speaker 1: a lot of the key women in the Bible, and
Speaker 1: I have shared that with my daughters because first off,
Speaker 1: of my eight girls, only two are our Caucasian the
Speaker 1: rest are women of color. And so the way that
Speaker 1: you have portrayed in the Chosen strong women, women that
Speaker 1: have character flaws and soared past and brokenness and joy
Speaker 1: and laughter and love and sisterhood. And and I'm hearing
Speaker 1: through the grapevine that this new season is really gonna
Speaker 1: uh paint those pictures and more vibrant colors than ever.
Speaker 1: Season three goes even deeper with the women of the show.
Speaker 1: Because one trap that you can sometimes fall into and say, Okay,
Speaker 1: women haven't been portray much, so we're gonna portray them
Speaker 1: and they're gonna be perfect and wonderful. And women have
Speaker 1: just the same struggles that men do. Maybe they look
Speaker 1: a little different, but they're flawed as well, And so
Speaker 1: we want to be honoring of some of these characters
Speaker 1: from the Gospels and some of the to the actresses
Speaker 1: that we have who are extraordinary to give them things
Speaker 1: to sink their teeth into as well. They're gonna argue
Speaker 1: in bicker this year, just like the Disciples do. They're
Speaker 1: gonna overcome some of their struggles, just like the Disciples do.
Speaker 1: They're gonna face doubts and questions just like the Disciples do.
Speaker 1: And Simon and Eden especially are at the heart of
Speaker 1: this season and they face a significant obstacle in their marriage.
Speaker 1: And how they overcome that and how how how they
Speaker 1: have to meet Jesus in that in that desperation is
Speaker 1: a key thrust of season three. So we just have
Speaker 1: a little bit of time here. Tell me about the
Speaker 1: actress Amber, Yeah, yeah, I can't wait to talk to her. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: you'll love Amber. She's great because she plays Tamar, who's
Speaker 1: an Ethiopian woman who we introduced in season one and
Speaker 1: we're planning on having for just one episode, and she
Speaker 1: brought just such a different flavor to the show that
Speaker 1: we thought, you know what, um, we know that there
Speaker 1: was a group of women who followed Jesus and who
Speaker 1: helped him in his ministry. Let's bring her back. Let's
Speaker 1: get her into the fold, because she just we love
Speaker 1: finding we we we consider the group of people around
Speaker 1: Jesus and this show to be like an orchestra, and
Speaker 1: we want to find people who play different tunes and
Speaker 1: different instruments so that when they come together, it's it's variety,
Speaker 1: not just literally skin tone, but also style and approach
Speaker 1: and energy. And uh so we we get to explore
Speaker 1: in this season her back story more what she brings
Speaker 1: to the table. And and now that the women are
Speaker 1: thrust together, uh in season three and are following Jesus
Speaker 1: together and didn't know each other beforehand, we really explore
Speaker 1: what that looks like. Thank you for that. Yeah, no,
Speaker 1: And I think that's what's been fun about the show
Speaker 1: is we're we're again we're not doing it for any
Speaker 1: political reasons. It's we're just capturing what we know of
Speaker 1: the story, which is that even the area where they
Speaker 1: where they where Jesus walked was a melting because it
Speaker 1: was a trade route. So we get to see different colors,
Speaker 1: different flavors, and also even neurological differences, Like Matthew, I mean,
Speaker 1: we really try to show the gamut because I think
Speaker 1: this is what happens gonna look like, so we might
Speaker 1: as well make sure that the viewers get to see
Speaker 1: themselves as well. Amen, Thank you, Thank you, Amber, Shana Williams. Welcome.
Speaker 1: You didn't see us yesterday, which means your people did
Speaker 1: a really good job making us hush. Um, but we
Speaker 1: saw you, and I got to see you in a
Speaker 1: scene you were looked like grinding. We that's when you
Speaker 1: were there. Yeah, yeah, you were scooping and grinding and
Speaker 1: mixing and pouring water. And I wanted to stay and
Speaker 1: like see what was unfolding, but they're like, no, you can't.
Speaker 1: You must go now, we can, yes, must. So I'm
Speaker 1: excited to talk to you for a number of reasons. Um.
Speaker 1: I and the mother of eight daughters, all but two
Speaker 1: are women of color, and there's a lot of things
Speaker 1: I can do. I can teach them about skincare and
Speaker 1: hair care. But there are some things I cannot do
Speaker 1: and I cannot be a strong, beautiful black role model
Speaker 1: to my girls. But you are and I love you
Speaker 1: for that. I thank you for that. And I was
Speaker 1: I was watching an interview with you earlier on a
Speaker 1: TV show, and you were talking about how you love
Speaker 1: feeling strong and powerful and you do martial arts and
Speaker 1: you're learning how to sword fight and all these superhero things.
Speaker 1: And yet the character that you portray in The Chosen,
Speaker 1: she's poised. She's so poised, she's so understated, underspoken and
Speaker 1: classic just classic beauty. Yeah, but we're gonna we're gonna
Speaker 1: be exploring that in season three of The Chosen to
Speaker 1: mark the open woman who brought the paralytic to Jesus
Speaker 1: to be healed. And she's the example of faith and
Speaker 1: the Chosen she has been because that key line, your
Speaker 1: faith is beautiful like that, that represents her and it has.
Speaker 1: And in season three, what they're gonna do is tell
Speaker 1: you a little bit more about her and why she
Speaker 1: is the way she is and touching on that story.
Speaker 1: And it's a deep story. It's a deep story. And
Speaker 1: as you mentioned before, you're the mom of a beautiful
Speaker 1: girl like I got ten siblings. I know about the
Speaker 1: big family, and you are a beautiful, perfect example of
Speaker 1: what it is to be a strong woman. And I
Speaker 1: appreciate and I know it's a privilege and responsibility to
Speaker 1: be representing people who look like me as well. I
Speaker 1: didn't know that at first. I didn't expect it. I
Speaker 1: wasn't planning on it. I just had to be a
Speaker 1: part of the Chosen. And then when I started to
Speaker 1: see the impact that it was having on everyone else,
Speaker 1: and then the messages started coming in and d M
Speaker 1: or showing up with people like I'm so happy to
Speaker 1: see my self on screens like me And it's just
Speaker 1: like that was the first thing my daughter said, Look
Speaker 1: when look, Mom, look look. And because I love God's
Speaker 1: words so much and I love the Bible so much,
Speaker 1: and I see how in the scriptures Jesus loves women
Speaker 1: and honors us so much, and yet that whole piece
Speaker 1: is somehow missed. It's often missed. And a lot of
Speaker 1: faith based media um and and and and films and
Speaker 1: television shows, and it focuses a lot on Jesus and
Speaker 1: you know his story. But what the Chosen does is
Speaker 1: not only does it. You know, it's telling the life
Speaker 1: of Christ, but it's doing it from the very human
Speaker 1: people around him, and they make great effort and great
Speaker 1: intent to also do it from the perspective of the women.
Speaker 1: I love that each one is unique and I none
Speaker 1: of them. Three the women kind of take some girl
Speaker 1: are going on in season three. Okay, there's a lot
Speaker 1: of things that we experience uniquely as women that they're
Speaker 1: going to delve into in season three. You know, we
Speaker 1: carry burdens, everybody's burden sometimes and um, we're gonna really
Speaker 1: touch base on that and what that means for us
Speaker 1: as women and the sisterhood and how difficult sometimes it
Speaker 1: is to maintain that because you're not just when you
Speaker 1: have a sisterhood, it's more than just we're here. We
Speaker 1: support each other all the time. Sometimes you gotta hold
Speaker 1: each other accountable. You know, sometimes you're conflicting in your
Speaker 1: button heads. And you may see some of that going
Speaker 1: on in season three and how that's going to be
Speaker 1: processed and and how we're going to move through that
Speaker 1: and still follow Christ. Because at the same time you
Speaker 1: have to know that that's that's the heart that the
Speaker 1: easy part is saying you're gonna do it. The difficult
Speaker 1: part is actually following the actual doing absolutely, And so
Speaker 1: we're gonna go through that entire process in season three
Speaker 1: and leave the door wide open for season floor to
Speaker 1: keep going like that there, it's not stopping, like the
Speaker 1: momentum just keeps building. So how they let you in
Speaker 1: on the next season's the next few seasons begging? I
Speaker 1: keep I'm like, can you just just you got the
Speaker 1: big guys, just to get the big Yeah that it
Speaker 1: works on my husband, but it didn't worked on I'm
Speaker 1: gonna try it on Amanda next and see what happened.
Speaker 1: I think you might. You might have an in road
Speaker 1: there because she's the one, She's the one, She's the
Speaker 1: reason I'm here. Actually it was Amanda who was like,
Speaker 1: that's tomorrow when I did that audition. It was Amanda
Speaker 1: and like and like I said, so all around behind
Speaker 1: the scenes and on the show that chosen, it's like
Speaker 1: getting it right with the women, and it's so difficult
Speaker 1: to find someone who tells our stories so well and
Speaker 1: and and so accurately from our point of view. And
Speaker 1: you're going to see in season three how how like
Speaker 1: deeper they delve into that. I can't wait, I thank you,
Speaker 1: thank you for being with us, Thanks for having me.
Speaker 1: It's been a privilege joining me. Is the incredible Brandon Potter,
Speaker 1: Brandon High, or as many of us know him, you
Speaker 1: are Quintus, who is the character we all love to hate.
Speaker 1: That's right, Brandon. How did you end up as this evil, smart, alecky,
Speaker 1: incredibly dry, brilliant evil character in In the Chosen. It
Speaker 1: was just an audition, but I think a casting director
Speaker 1: in town recommended that I do something because they were
Speaker 1: talking to people in l A for a lot of
Speaker 1: these roles. But I think it was Beverly who said
Speaker 1: you should bring a Brandon for this, and I did,
Speaker 1: and Dallas and I got to play during the audition. Um.
Speaker 1: I think Quintus originally started out as, you know, a
Speaker 1: Roman who was eating grapes and was very disinterested, you know,
Speaker 1: which is kind of a trope. And he said, I
Speaker 1: like to do something else. So of course he did
Speaker 1: because Dallas, Yeah, because he's Dallas and he wants to play.
Speaker 1: So I said, what if he really likes this, What
Speaker 1: if he's really interested in efficiency, maintain the status quo?
Speaker 1: What if he's a bureaucrat died in the wall. You know,
Speaker 1: he said, okay, let's give it a go. So we
Speaker 1: got to play with that during this audition. We both
Speaker 1: had a great time and the rest, as they say,
Speaker 1: is history. There we go. I appreciate the fact that
Speaker 1: you make him human like, he's not just a villain
Speaker 1: when you read the scripture a lot of times, for me,
Speaker 1: the characters are kind of one dimensional, and the gift
Speaker 1: of the chosen for me is the way that the
Speaker 1: characters are real. They're real people. Jesus is a real man. Uh,
Speaker 1: they have real relationships, they have real situations, and even
Speaker 1: as this bureaucratic jerk, Uh, your character has a human side.
Speaker 1: Like you care about Matthew. You're very protective of this jerky,
Speaker 1: autistic he's the character is on the artistic spectrum. Uh,
Speaker 1: Jewish man who turned against his faith and against his
Speaker 1: family to be a tax collector. But it's almost I
Speaker 1: almost feel like you've got like a a big brother
Speaker 1: or a father like role in his life in the story. YEA.
Speaker 1: Was that an on purpose? Oh? Definitely yeah. And I think,
Speaker 1: you know, to go back to the point that you
Speaker 1: mentioned earlier about the humanity of this story, I think
Speaker 1: that's one of the central features of the Chosen that
Speaker 1: makes it meaningful, right, is that it is populated with
Speaker 1: real people, and I think that the audience will be
Speaker 1: able to relate to, if not everyone, then at least
Speaker 1: one person you know, And I think that's what makes
Speaker 1: this important. And in terms of you know, my character,
Speaker 1: even when you're playing a bad guy, you have to
Speaker 1: find something that you relate to. And the writer's really
Speaker 1: really cleverly gave me lots of stuff to relate to.
Speaker 1: First of all, he's uh a small part of a
Speaker 1: story he doesn't fully understand, right, And that's something that
Speaker 1: I can definitely relate to. I'm just one actor in
Speaker 1: this giant production. I don't fully understand it, fully understand
Speaker 1: its reach, and that's easy to relate to. The Other
Speaker 1: thing is this relationship to Matthew Quintus sees his analytical
Speaker 1: brain and relates to it immediately, And who can't empathize
Speaker 1: with that. You see someone who maybe has gifts like you,
Speaker 1: and you want to mentor them so that they can
Speaker 1: maybe avoid the same pitfalls as you, maybe you can
Speaker 1: make a better version of yourself, whatever your reasons are.
Speaker 1: When that happens, you go um onto those people and
Speaker 1: quint Is is a human who does that exact thing.
Speaker 1: He sees someone who has a similar gift to him,
Speaker 1: which is that sort of analytical machinery in his mind,
Speaker 1: and really really wants to cultivate it. I also love
Speaker 1: how what a smart alk you are. You know. I
Speaker 1: don't know if that's the writer's brilliance or your way
Speaker 1: to deliver the lines, but dude, you can just zing.
Speaker 1: I think that's teamwork right there, really good teamwork. And
Speaker 1: the way your eyes sparkle when you get to deliver
Speaker 1: the zinger. I fun. Yeah, it's hard not to. It's
Speaker 1: hard not to really really relish it. It's hard not
Speaker 1: to really enjoy it, you know. So I get these
Speaker 1: sort of like fun interactions with fans they get they
Speaker 1: get all the pathos, and I get all the humor,
Speaker 1: which is nice. So do you think anybody has ever
Speaker 1: watched that character and said, I am too much like that.
Speaker 1: I need to not be quite so regimented and maybe
Speaker 1: like relax a little. I certainly hope. So. Well, thank
Speaker 1: you for your time, thank you for thank you the show,
Speaker 1: and I can't wait to see season three. Also with
Speaker 1: me today is Giovanni Cairo and Jordan Walker Ross who
Speaker 1: played Thaddius and a little James. So tell me how
Speaker 1: you both, you know, take turns here, how you both
Speaker 1: came to be a part of the cast. Where you
Speaker 1: were at in your life faith wise, and maybe if
Speaker 1: that's changed over the last four years. I mean, you know,
Speaker 1: I was at a point I think I was in
Speaker 1: l a for about five years and then from Michigan originally,
Speaker 1: so I was a missing family, like crazy, It wasn't
Speaker 1: really where I wanted to be a career wise, and uh,
Speaker 1: just really considering going back home to uh kind of
Speaker 1: call it quits or at least take a break and
Speaker 1: do you with my family, and I missed them, and
Speaker 1: uh um, I got an audition for the showsen and
Speaker 1: at that point in my life my faith was really
Speaker 1: you know, it wasn't really where it needed to be.
Speaker 1: But auditioned a couple of times and and then had
Speaker 1: a skype with Dallas and he said, we, uh what
Speaker 1: we wanted to be part of the Chosen. We don't
Speaker 1: know we're gonna place you just yet, but uh we
Speaker 1: want you aboard. Changed my life, honestly, give me, give
Speaker 1: me two examples of how your life has been transformed. Yeah,
Speaker 1: before and after I mean before, I mean with The
Speaker 1: thing is with with that he is being able to
Speaker 1: play him. He's such a hard, honest sleep character, and
Speaker 1: he just really he's a peacemaker. He wants everybody to
Speaker 1: be on the same page. Um. That's taught me to
Speaker 1: be more loving and kind towards people I don't even know,
Speaker 1: my family, my friends. It's made me want to be
Speaker 1: a better person each day. Um. And I see that
Speaker 1: reflected in people watching the show. And that's the best
Speaker 1: gift I could get. So. So, I had been living
Speaker 1: in l A for about ten years on and off,
Speaker 1: and I had to come back home for a major
Speaker 1: hip surgery back to Dallas Fort Worth, and I met
Speaker 1: my wife while I was down here. Acting wasn't really
Speaker 1: going well out in l A. So we decided, you know,
Speaker 1: I'd stay in Texas recover from my surgery and maybe
Speaker 1: we'd go back out there later on. And I got
Speaker 1: the audition for the Chosen and at that time, I
Speaker 1: don't think I had booked anything in at least four years. Uh.
Speaker 1: And the one thing I did book, I was replaced
Speaker 1: because my limp was too noticeable on camera. So my
Speaker 1: my limp is something that I felt I needed to
Speaker 1: hide for every audition because I've been told by casting
Speaker 1: directors in the past, you know, to tone the limp
Speaker 1: down or try it without the limp. Then it was
Speaker 1: in the back of my mind at every audition, so
Speaker 1: it was taking away from the performance, and it was
Speaker 1: a huge insecurity of mine and for The Chosen. The
Speaker 1: audition was actually in the building I worked at, so
Speaker 1: it was really convenient, and I I did the audition,
Speaker 1: I did the callback. I auditioned for Andrew first, and
Speaker 1: then Matthew Uh and got Little James, obviously. But the
Speaker 1: thing that has changed my perspective and changed my life
Speaker 1: the most regarding The Chosen is the fact that Dallas Jenkins,
Speaker 1: the creator of The Chosen, came to me and after
Speaker 1: season one he asked if it would be okay if
Speaker 1: they incorporated my disability into the character. And it was
Speaker 1: a scary proposition for me to all of a sudden
Speaker 1: reveal the thing that I was most insecure about and
Speaker 1: shining a spotlight on it rather than try to cover
Speaker 1: it up or hide it. And but I said yes, thankfully,
Speaker 1: because that forced me to be more vulnerable than I
Speaker 1: had ever been, and slowly that got me on the
Speaker 1: track to start to see it as a strength and
Speaker 1: not a weakness, and to understand that you know, not
Speaker 1: everyone needs the type of healing they think they do,
Speaker 1: and that your your flaws can sometimes be you know,
Speaker 1: your your greatest asset. So it was that was one
Speaker 1: of the many ways that it was a life changing
Speaker 1: experience for me. Well, thank you, Thank you for sharing time,
Speaker 1: thank you for letting me be a part of this
Speaker 1: of course, appreciate it with you. Are you loving these
Speaker 1: conversations as much as I am. I'll continue chatting with
Speaker 1: the cast of the Chosen, but I need to shine
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Speaker 1: I'm gonna sit here and sip a cup of tea
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Speaker 1: my home or my studio are sure to notice one
Speaker 1: thing right away, my love for tea. One of my
Speaker 1: favorites is bigelow t S constant comment. It's been my
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Speaker 1: during the afternoon slump, or when sitting down in front
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Speaker 1: It's been blended by the Bigelow family for three generations,
Speaker 1: and you'll taste the love they add in every cup. Hi, Laura,
Speaker 1: Laura Silva does an amazing job of playing the beautiful
Speaker 1: sweet Eden in the Chosen So you're about the same
Speaker 1: age as the character you play in the Bible. In
Speaker 1: the actual Bible, you don't have a name. You're just
Speaker 1: known as his wife, and and he miraculous Jesus miraculously
Speaker 1: heals your mother in the actual scriptures. But in the Chosen.
Speaker 1: You've got a name. I asked a couple of the
Speaker 1: other folks who are involved with the production, can you
Speaker 1: share how being a part of the Chosen, being eaten
Speaker 1: in the Chosen might have impacted you personally, like who
Speaker 1: you were and who you are? Has there been a transformation?
Speaker 1: Absolutely before even booking The Chosen, I when I even
Speaker 1: just decided to pursue acting. Um, I didn't fully start
Speaker 1: realizing that my passion and my dream for acting was
Speaker 1: even reachable until I let Jesus in my life. Until
Speaker 1: I pursued him and he showed me that he can
Speaker 1: get me there. He really, like, just open that up
Speaker 1: in me. These talents and gifts that I was born with.
Speaker 1: It I didn't even know I had until I asked
Speaker 1: God and until he showed me. And then you know this,
Speaker 1: this industry is, it's so tough to na the game.
Speaker 1: And I feel like He's opened the doors for me
Speaker 1: and he's closed some and He's put people in my life,
Speaker 1: um to help get me to where I am. And
Speaker 1: and then just continuing my journey and pursuing my acting
Speaker 1: career with like Jesus has my guide. I don't think
Speaker 1: that I could have done it, and I don't think
Speaker 1: that I would have the courage and the strength to
Speaker 1: to pursue it this late in the game. I feel
Speaker 1: like without him, I know that one of the beautiful
Speaker 1: things about The Chosen is that intimacy between the cast
Speaker 1: and the audience. Your audience is so faithful and so committed.
Speaker 1: I mean, there would be no Chosen if people had
Speaker 1: not crowdfunded it. When people connect with you, when they
Speaker 1: contact you, what are some of the like the key
Speaker 1: things that that you're receiving from people? The main things
Speaker 1: I get from whether it's messages online from fans or
Speaker 1: meeting them in person, is just how how much they
Speaker 1: love seeing the relationship between Eden and Simon. And then
Speaker 1: particularly there's a scene with Eden and Jesus when Jesus
Speaker 1: tells Eaten that you know, even though Simon is out
Speaker 1: doing all these things, I want you to know that
Speaker 1: I see you. And when I mean, I feel like
Speaker 1: almost every fan, whether man or woman, it's like, you know,
Speaker 1: he sees you, He's there for you, he loves you,
Speaker 1: and that resonated with them and to be able to
Speaker 1: share that and when they tell me how that's impacted
Speaker 1: them based on their personal life or you know, stay
Speaker 1: at Whole Moms or you know that that they're also
Speaker 1: seen and that they have a you know, a joy
Speaker 1: and a purpose and that Jesus is there as well
Speaker 1: like that. That's that means everything that I got to help,
Speaker 1: I guess play a role in that and telling them, well,
Speaker 1: thank you, thank you. Oh, I appreciate it. Thank you.
Speaker 1: I am so excited that Elizabeth Tabish, known to the
Speaker 1: Chosen Watchers as Mary Magdalene, could also work us into
Speaker 1: her schedule today. Your character, the way you portray Mary
Speaker 1: the Magdalene is amazing. Thank you more than any other character.
Speaker 1: In the first couple of episodes. You were the first
Speaker 1: episode but had me hook line and sinker, Oh, thank you.
Speaker 1: That's so nice to hear you. Thank you. You nailed it.
Speaker 1: And I have to know, is there like some dark
Speaker 1: secret in your background, like I have a lot of
Speaker 1: dark secrets in my background that that helps you to
Speaker 1: relate to the character or did Is that just your
Speaker 1: brilliant actress? Well, I'd like to just say I'm a
Speaker 1: really good actress. But at that time I was coming
Speaker 1: out of a depression. UM, I was self medicating, I
Speaker 1: was drinking a lot, UM, I had a lot of
Speaker 1: like a string of sort of bad boyfriend experiences. UM.
Speaker 1: And you know, I was I was kind of living
Speaker 1: in a state of despair for a while without even
Speaker 1: really realizing it. UM, just kind of like getting through
Speaker 1: each day. UM. I had some back injuries from some
Speaker 1: car accidents, so I wasn't very you know active, I
Speaker 1: was an exercising I was sort of just in this
Speaker 1: sort of chronic pain and not actively pursuing the things
Speaker 1: that used to like really light up my heart. And
Speaker 1: so I was just sort of like getting getting by
Speaker 1: day by day. I was. I was you know, depression
Speaker 1: is a funny thing, because it would be nice to
Speaker 1: be able to be like, oh it was this thing
Speaker 1: that made me depressed. But like I think, just living
Speaker 1: in this world and being a sensitive person and feeling
Speaker 1: things deeply and seeing what's on the news and seeing
Speaker 1: what's happening to people in the world, like all of
Speaker 1: that builds and builds and and creates this like kind
Speaker 1: of ongoing despair if we don't catch it. And um,
Speaker 1: and so that sort of coupled with you know, my
Speaker 1: own sort of emotional life that that UM, I was
Speaker 1: stuck in a rut, in this loop of just seeing
Speaker 1: only the negative and you know, not not actively pursuing
Speaker 1: uh suicidal activity, but but thoughts that sort of suicidal
Speaker 1: ideation of just like I want to not be here.
Speaker 1: I want to not be in this world, um, which
Speaker 1: is a bad place to be, you know, it's a
Speaker 1: scary pace to be, but very commonplace, I think, the
Speaker 1: address of so many people's emotional heart right now. And
Speaker 1: so I I felt isolated and only and that was
Speaker 1: the place that I first got the scripts. That's the
Speaker 1: place where I got the audition. And so it's like,
Speaker 1: Dallas know any of this or was this is all that?
Speaker 1: This is exactly the character where she is, you know,
Speaker 1: it's uncanny. And I was like, this is if I
Speaker 1: don't get this. And I was about to quit acting too,
Speaker 1: So when I got this script, I was like, is
Speaker 1: this this is too good to be true? And because
Speaker 1: I had so many losses in like rejections, I was like,
Speaker 1: if I don't book this, then it is the biggest
Speaker 1: sign that I need to quit acting, find a different job,
Speaker 1: and like try to start over coming from a place
Speaker 1: of just like complete negativity into you know. And it's
Speaker 1: taken me some time of of adjusting. Two good things
Speaker 1: happening in the world, and the good things happening to me.
Speaker 1: Like it has been like just to see change of
Speaker 1: the sort of hope that I have, the excitement, enthusiasm
Speaker 1: I have for being alive, the gratitude I have for um,
Speaker 1: for sticking around for another day, you know, to like
Speaker 1: keep going, even even on those hard days of just
Speaker 1: like well, sleep through it, you know, get get to
Speaker 1: the next day. It feels so impossible. All of this
Speaker 1: feels so impossible to me. I don't know how it's happening.
Speaker 1: I don't know how it could have happened to me.
Speaker 1: And so I'm I'm so grateful. And yes, I mean
Speaker 1: clearly my my life has changed, and my my faith
Speaker 1: in God, my faith and love and community and the
Speaker 1: care that people have for each other, my faith and
Speaker 1: people too has has has changed, and Um, and it has.
Speaker 1: It's the whole thing has been life changing and transforming
Speaker 1: for me. And I don't take it for granted at
Speaker 1: any point to know that like this is such an
Speaker 1: unusual and almost impossible scenario. And UM and I get
Speaker 1: a you know, experience at firsthand, and we all get
Speaker 1: experienced together, you know, the fans, the cast, the crew,
Speaker 1: like we get to go through this process together and
Speaker 1: constantly be reminded of these beautiful things in the Gospels
Speaker 1: that affected these characters back then and now get to
Speaker 1: affect us in a very real way. Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1: Thanks for ruining my makeup. Sorry, I know what I
Speaker 1: have to go, but I'm praying for you. Thank you
Speaker 1: so much. I appreciate that The Chosen is wrapped up
Speaker 1: filming season three, and in an exciting twist this year,
Speaker 1: they are debuting episodes one and two of the most
Speaker 1: emotional and consequential season to date on the big screen
Speaker 1: beginning November eighteen. Tickets are on sale now, so don't hesitate.
Speaker 1: It is going to be a wonderful night out. It
Speaker 1: will be a brief run in theaters before season three
Speaker 1: hits the show's streaming platform, where they will be available
Speaker 1: for free, as the first two seasons have been, with
Speaker 1: the remaining six episodes dropping one per week on the
Speaker 1: same online venue. The Chosen came to me and my
Speaker 1: family in the midst of a worldwide pandemic. When Fear
Speaker 1: and Hope we're running a foot race, and Fear seemed
Speaker 1: to be taking the lead. The Chosen showed up and
Speaker 1: showed me and my family that all it took was
Speaker 1: a matter of perspective and a mustard seat of faith
Speaker 1: to see that Hope was going to be the clear
Speaker 1: and obvious winner each and every time they matched up
Speaker 1: in a competition. I don't know what you may be
Speaker 1: going through right now, but I do know that we
Speaker 1: all have something, some challenge, some trial, some insecurity that
Speaker 1: weighs upon us. I encourage you, as I always do,
Speaker 1: to let go and let God. And while you're working
Speaker 1: on that, watch The Chosen. Its characters are sublimely multidimensional,
Speaker 1: beautifully flawed, brilliantly portrayed, and you will come away odd
Speaker 1: and inspired. I'm so grateful I was able to spend
Speaker 1: time on the set with the amazing people I interacted with.
Speaker 1: I hope you enjoyed the conversations, all of them, all
Speaker 1: the conversations I got to share with you today. I
Speaker 1: love someone with the Lilah. Take care, my friend, and
Speaker 1: I will catch up with you again very soon. Until then,
Speaker 1: take some time out of your busy schedule to slow
Speaker 1: down and love someone