Luke Dimyan (“Better Things” and “Home Invasion”) portrays the disciple Judas Iscariot in the drama, “The Chosen.”
“The Chosen,” developed by Dallas Jenkins, is a historical drama based on the life of Jesus and those who knew him. Set against the backdrop of Roman oppression in first-century Israel, the series shares an authentic look at Jesus’ revolutionary life and teachings. Judas is a treasurer and the one who eventually betrays Jesus.
The official synopsis of season 4 reads: Clashing kingdoms. Rival rulers. The enemies of Jesus close in while His followers struggle to keep up, leaving him to carry the burden alone. Threatened by the reality of Jesus’ growing influence, religious leaders do the unthinkable – ally with their Roman oppressors. As the seeds of betrayal are planted and opposition to Jesus’ message turns violent, he’s left with no alternative but to demand his followers RISE UP.
“The Chosen” also stars Jonathan Roumie as Jesus, Elizabeth Tabish as Mary Magdalene, Shara Isaac as Simon Peter along with David Amito, Paras Patel, George H. Xanthis, Noah James, Nick Shakoor, Giavani Cairo, Shaan Sharma, Lara Silva, Abe Bueno-Jallad, Brandon Potter, Kirk B. R. Woller, and Jordan Walker Ross.
Check out our interview with Luke:
For people not familiar with the series, can you briefly explain what “The Chosen” is about?
Luke: The Chosen is a historical drama about the life of Jesus Christ through the eyes of those that loved and followed him. It’s an interesting look at the story of Jesus with enough artistic liberty, political intrusive, and heart wrenching character studies to entice anyone who is or isn’t familiar with the biblical text. It’s also masterfully made as to remain as faithful adaption to the original text and the Christian religion as a whole.
And season 4 centers around the end of Jesus’s life, correct?
Luke: Not exactly. I’d say season 4 is the beginning of the end that many fans are dreading. After 3 full seasons to get attached to so many lovely characters, the build up is complete and all that’s left is for our characters to face the consequences of their ever expanding ministry. Jesus knows this, and you can see the light hearted, fun tone of our show be ever so slightly tuned down to make room for much more serious moments.
I feel like it is hard to spoil a series like this, but are there things within the story that viewers may not expect?
Luke: Oh absolutely. The way the show is being written it’s expanded on so many character moments and highlighted story development/arcs over a simple retelling of scripture. The Bible gives simply the accounts of Jesus Christ’s teachings, but this is a T.V. Show. We’ve got a whole lot more in store than just that. And it’s fun to watch!
This is a faith-based story, but is this a series that everyone can enjoy?
Luke: I’d like to think so. I know our show is primarily watched and appreciated by a Christian audience and that can seem intimidating at times but the way this show is written and where it’s available to watch, I think this is an interesting adaptation of the story of Jesus Christ that anyone can truly enjoy.
You’ve received praise for your portrayal of Judas, congratulations. Did you expect so much positive feedback?
Luke: I have? I never really thought about it much, thanks! I don’t usually expect positive feedback at all so it’s nice to see that people are really enjoying my performance if it stands out to them. As an actor I’m very critical of myself so I’m always trying to do better or push myself to give a better performance. I’m just glad that as I work to improve there’s people who still really enjoy my work. Even if I don’t myself
How did you approach playing this character?
Luke: The same way I would with any character. I tried to find what drove him, how he feels about others, what he’s afraid of, as many specifics as I could get. Then I add a little bit of me in there and I just kept him human. After that I just let the scripts do the work and rely on my fellow actors when I need to.
As someone familiar with Judas and this story, it was nice to hear that he was portrayed not as a villain, but just another disciple. Were there any character traits that you grasped onto within Judas to give him more depth?
Luke: I always held onto one truth for the character. He loves Jesus. Like really loves him. No matter how the betrayal happens it has to come from a lens of love. Whatever way it got twisted and lost along the way, he did everything he did and he loved Jesus at the same time. That’s the dichotomy of his character. You wouldn’t die for someone if you didn’t love them.
Can you talk a little bit about Judas’s journey this season and how you were able to focus on his humanity in this series.
Luke: I think Judas’ desperation is starting to show, which is fun to play. No matter what he thinks or says he just always gets it wrong. He’s on the constant back foot compared to everyone else. And I think that frustration sets him up to be alone and in a desperate place where we can see him make those mistakes that lead to his inevitable downfall.
The name Judas is synonymous with betrayal, but after watching this season, what words do you hope viewers will associate Judas with?
Luke: Tragedy, pity, heartbreak. I hope that people can come to see the true hurt that came with the betrayal, especially for Judas. All of fate was conspired against him. He had no luck in its planning. He was always destined to die for Jesus and set in motion the final act of his plan. It was a gruesome destiny he could never escape, and something you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy.
Where can we stream the entire series?
Luke: You can stream all of seasons one through three on Prime Video and Peacock respectively, as well as all episodes along with some bonus content on The Chosen app. You can also stream season one on Netflix.
“The Chosen” Season 4 will be available to the public for streaming exclusively in The Chosen app on Sunday, June 2, at 7 p.m. ET.
Episode one of Season 4 will be available for streaming beginning on Sunday, June 2. The second episode will be available on the following Thursday, June 6 at 8:30 p.m. ET, with ensuing episodes released on Sundays at 7 p.m. ET and Thursdays at 8:30 p.m. ET over the course of four weeks.
For more information on Season 4 streaming in The Chosen app, click here.
