'It's Not Us, It's Him': Producer of 'The Chosen' Reveals Divine Inspiration Behind Record-Breaking Christmas Special

The holiday season might just be getting underway, but the viral series “The Chosen” is already setting records with sales for its forthcoming Christmas special.

Set to debut in theaters Dec. 1, “Christmas With The Chosen: The Messengers” has already expanded the number of venues airing the film. According to CBN News, ticket sales broke the Fathom Events record with a whopping $1.5 million in revenue in the first 12 hours.

While the early success is certainly stunning, Derral Eves, executive producer of “The Chosen” series, told Faithwire God has been orchestrating the faith-based show — and the upcoming holiday film — since its inception.

In fact, Eves believes it was divine intervention that led the show’s creator, Dallas Jenkins, and the rest of “The Chosen” team to put together “The Messengers” this Christmas.

“I do believe we have this as a constant agenda item: it’s not us, it’s Him,” he told Faithwire. “[We] never get big-headed or [into] thinking it’s all us, because it’s not; it hasn’t been since day one. We’ve said we just bring our loaves and fishes, and God multiplies it in ways we can’t even dream of.”

Eves went on to explain that he, Jenkins, and the rest of the team behind “The Chosen,” which cinematically chronicles Jesus’ earthly ministry, were repeatedly stymied while putting together the third season of the beloved series.

It wasn’t until the team redirected their focus to the Christmas special that things began falling into place.

“I haven’t shared this before,” said Eves. “We hit wall after wall after wall to produce season three. We just did. We had no reason why, and then it was like, ‘Oh, we need to produce this Christmas episode.’ It was like literally one of those things we had to do, and, once we started on that project, everything came in line. It was almost the day after … it opened up here to do all the rest.”

“We’re on a different time schedule,” he added, noting the Christmas episode was “absolutely” something God was calling them to produce. “We’re on a different way of doing things. All we need to do is get out of the way sometimes.”

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The special premiering next month will mark the first time “The Chosen” — which started out as a Christmas short film Jenkins produced for his church several years ago — has made it to the silver screen.

Eves recalled a moment during the filming of “The Messengers” when the monumental success of “The Chosen” in a mere four years really hit him and Jenkins.

“It was the last shot we needed, and it was Mary and Joseph in a very unique situation, and we just looked at each other with tears in our eyes,” he said. “I can’t believe we’re here for this. … It hit us how big this really is and how small our role really is.”

In addition to telling the story of Jesus’ birth, the Christmas special also includes performances from several Christian recording artists, including Phil Wickham, CAIN, Matt Maher, Maverick City Music, and For King and Country, among others.

Filming those segments was particularly impactful for Jenkins, according to Eves.

“Dallas is very inspired artistically from music — a lot of the things he writes come from that spontaneity of something that connects with him through music,” he said. “Seeing him be able to worship in a music video really connected to all of us. It was really beautiful to watch.”

Since its premiere in November 2017, episodes of “The Chosen” have been watched more than 150 million times and translated into more than 50 languages. The series holds the record for the largest crowd-funded media venture in entertainment history.

For more information about “Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers,” click here.

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