The faith-based Bible series “The Chosen” has been granted a waiver from the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike that has brought nearly all of Hollywood to a screeching halt.
Dallas Jenkins, the creator of the series, announced Friday he had “submitted all the requested paperwork” to apply for a waiver from the strike, which began just after midnight Friday.
“We fit all qualifications for an exemption,” he wrote in a brief letter to the union, which he posted to social media. “You have our application for it. Every day that goes by without your response costs us hundreds of thousands of dollars while your actors are stuck in Utah.”
He continued, “We’re the good guys; we’ve treated your actors well. Please take the few minutes to approve our application so your actors can get back to work getting paid for the last two weeks of a season they want to finish.”
Such waivers are available to “truly independent producers,” so long as they are not associated with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and agree to fall into submission retroactively to whatever contract terms are eventually agreed upon with the AMPTP once the strike is resolved.
Several of the actors in “The Chosen” are members of SAG-AFTRA, including Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the popular series.
Listen to the latest episode of CBN’s Quick Start podcast 👇
In an Instagram post of his own, Roumie wrote, “We hope to return to our regularly scheduled program soon…please stand by. … And keep those prayers coming!”
Noah James, who plays Andrew in the show, thanked SAG-AFTRA for the exemption in a post shared to his Instagram Story. He wrote, “We’ve been given an interim agreement for ‘The Chosen,’ so we can continue filming starting tomorrow, and finish out the season for the next few weeks.”
“‘The Chosen’ is not part of the AMPTP and, as an independent show, has immediately agreed to SAG’s terms,” he continued. “So thankful to be a part of this show and this union. Once we are sent back home, we’re all ready to hop on the picket lines, striking against the AMPTP with our union.”
As for Jenkins, he added, “Thanks to the [Screen Actors Guild] for getting specific and acknowledging our efforts.”
“The Chosen” is the first known TV series to be granted a waiver from the SAG-AFTRA strike and the first film or television production to resume work after being halted by the strike late last week, according to Deadline.
The cast and crew for the Christian series resumed filming Monday morning in Utah.
All of this began in May, when members of the Writers Guild of America walked off their jobs over studios using new streaming business models, paying screenwriters less money for more work. Film and television actors joined the strike Friday, adding to their demands more protections for actors’ likenesses as the use of artificial intelligence expands.
This marks the first time in more than 60 years the WGA and SAG-AFTRA have gone on strike together. The last time this happened was in 1960, when the SAG was helmed by former President Ronald Reagan.
***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***