CREATOR OF "THE CHOSEN" ANNOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF NEW PRODUCTION COMPANY 5&2 STUDIOS DURING CHOSENCON IN ORLANDO

The Chosen Franchise Expands with New Unscripted Adventure Series The Chosen in the Wild with Bear Grylls Hosted by Bear Grylls and New Children's Animated Series The Chosen Adventures Featuring Emmy(R) Winner Paul Walter Hauser, Emmy(R) Nominee Yvonne Orji, and Two-Time GRAMMY(R)-Nominated Artist Jordin Sparks, Among Other Projects

ORLANDO, Fla., Sept. 20, 2024 -- Creator of The Chosen, Dallas Jenkins, embarks on his next chapter with the formation of 5&2 Studios, a new independent studio that will now oversee production of The Chosen franchise in addition to a future lineup of film and television projects set in the biblical world. The announcement was made during the first day of the ChosenCon fan convention in Orlando.

"Nearly every time I encounter a viewer, they say something about wanting more Bible content from us. I always say we need to not get ahead of ourselves and remain focused, but now we've got a robust enough team to expand our efforts," said Dallas Jenkins, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer at 5&2 Studios and Creator and Executive Producer of The Chosen, as well as Director of Lionsgate's upcoming film The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. "I'm very excited to bring our 'Chosen way' to more great stories from the Bible, and it's awesome that we get to first announce it to the fans who helped get us here long before we were popular."

Over 5,000 fans of The Chosen gathered at The Chosen Insiders Conference (a.k.a. "ChosenCon") for the two-day celebratory fan convention on September 20-21 in Orlando, featuring panel discussions, cast meet-and-greets, special announcements, sneak previews, and more. The first ChosenCon was held in Dallas, TX in 2023 with over 3,500 attendees.

The new 5&2 Studios is currently in production or development on the following projects:

The Chosen Adventures

The Chosen Adventures follows 9-year-old Abby in the Galilean city of Capernaum, circa 30 CE. Inquisitive young Abby is bursting at the seams with questions and feels she doesn't have the kinds of answers she's looking for. When she and her best friend, Joshua, meet Jesus will all that change? The 14-episode animated series features the voice talents of Emmy(R) winner Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird, I, Tonya), Emmy(R) nominee Yvonne Orji (Insecure) and two-time GRAMMY(R)-nominated artist Jordin Sparks, as well cast members from The Chosen, including Jonathan Roumie, Paras Patel, Elizabeth Tabish, Noah James, Joey Vahedi, Yasmine Al-Bustami, Brandon Potter and George H. Xanthis.

"I'm thrilled to welcome Paul, Yvonne, and Jordin into The Chosen family as we continue to produce more incredible content for our fans," said Ryan Swanson, Creator/Executive Producer of The Chosen Adventures and Executive Producer of The Chosen. "We were surprised and encouraged to discover that children have been watching The Chosen alongside their parents, so we wanted to continue the family co-viewing experience by creating an animated series that is full of humor, heartfelt life lessons, and loveable characters."

The Chosen In the Wild with Bear Grylls

In the six-episode unscripted adventure series, produced by The Natural Studios in association with 5&2 Studios, celebrity survivalist and adventurer Bear Grylls (Emmy(R)-nominated Running Wild with Bear Grylls and You vs. Wild, Man vs. Wild) takes an immersive journey with the cast and creator of The Chosen, providing a unique exploration of the global hit series. In each episode, Grylls ventures into the wild with one cast member while exploring their personal stories and diving deeper into their own perspectives on the series and the characters they portray.

"This show allows viewers to discover what the real people behind the phenomenal The Chosen series are actually like. The wild opens people up in a way nothing else does, and it challenges us to dig deep and find our true selves. This adventure series pushes The Chosen actors like never before whilst also discovering their own personal stories of life and faith. That's the magic of this new series, bringing new insight and revelation to some of TV's most loved and watched characters," said Grylls.

In Development

Other projects in development include a three-season series following Moses' story, a limited series featuring the life of Joseph, and the next chapter following The Chosen with the Acts of the Apostles.

The Chosen

Debuting in 2025, Season 5 follows Jesus during "Holy Week," including the final events occurring through the Last Supper. Launching in 2027 and 2028 respectively, Seasons 6 and 7 will include special theatrical releases focusing on the Crucifixion and Resurrection. Season 4 is currently airing on The CW on Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT through October 20 and is also available on Peacock, Prime Video, and The Chosen app.

The Chosen is a groundbreaking historical drama based on the life of Jesus (Jonathan Roumie), seen through the eyes of those who knew him. Set against the backdrop of Roman oppression in first-century Israel, the seven-season show shares an authentic and intimate look at Jesus' revolutionary life and teachings.

With over 250 million viewers, The Chosen is one of the most-watched shows in the world. The series is consistently a top performer across streaming platforms Amazon Prime, Peacock, and Netflix plus a top-rated broadcast weekly on The CW. What started as a crowd-funded project has now garnered over 800 million episode views and more than 16 million social media followers.

The Chosen is an independent production written, directed, and produced by Dallas Jenkins and distributed globally by Lionsgate.

About 5&2 Studios

Founded by Dallas Jenkins following the global success of the hit series The Chosen, 5&2 Studios is an independent studio that connects people around the world to stories from the Bible through uniquely human and authentic storytelling and audience engagement. From its humble beginnings as a crowd-funded passion project, the studio has expanded its production arm with original scripted and unscripted programming, animated series, and digital content, in addition to managing its own distribution, marketing, consumer products, and studio facilities. For more information, visit http://5and2Studios.com.