Jonathan Roumie walked onto The View this week with the same calm energy he brings to Jesus in The Chosen, but things got emotional fast. When Ana Navarro asked him if he could play Jesus without being a man of faith, Roumie didn’t hesitate. “I don’t think it would have the same kind of authenticity. I think what I bring to the role is my relationship to Christ, is my relationship with Jesus, and my love for him.” He added that portraying Jesus pushed him to love people better, which is a pretty wild job perk when you think about it.
Sunny Hostin pressed him for real-life stories from viewers whose lives changed after watching the series. That’s when Roumie dropped a detail that stopped the table. He said he occasionally scrolls through his Instagram DMs, picks a couple at random, and two people he stumbled across were “lifelong atheists” who had never cared about church, God or anything close. Then someone sent them the show. They watched the first episode, got hooked and, in Roumie’s words, “If God wants to, He will find you. He will follow you. He will go after you.”
Those two viewers went from avoiding faith to reading the Bible and attending church, eventually choosing Christianity. Roumie called their journey “remarkable,” and you could tell it hit him hard. It’s the kind of story that reminds you how unpredictable people can be. You think you know where someone stands, then a single episode of a series filmed in Texas and Utah cracks something open.
Earlier in the interview, co-host Sara Haines asked why shooting season six left him drained. The season, arriving in 2026, covers the crucifixion, and Roumie didn’t sugarcoat how heavy that was. He said that as an actor, he searches for truth in every role, but stepping into the torture and death of Jesus took him deep into emotional and psychological territory he’s still working through. “I asked God to allow me some sense of what that would be like, and He didn’t disappoint,” he said.
It’s a tall order playing one of the most influential figures in history. Roumie’s stories suggest he feels that weight every day, yet he keeps showing up with humor, patience and a willingness to carry the tough moments with him long after the cameras shut off.
RELATED: The Chosen Actor Jonathan Roumie Is Looking for a Wife Who Shares His Faith
