Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus Christ in the television series The Chosen, has shared how the role has profoundly shaped his spiritual life, prayer, and understanding of Christ’s suffering, according to Catholic News Agency.
In a recent interview with Father Mike Schmitz on Ascension Presents, Roumie reflected on how his life experiences — including childhood trauma and faith formation — prepared him to embody Christ on screen. “Everything in my life has prepared me for this role,” Roumie said, according to Catholic News Agency.
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Roumie recalled that as a 12-year-old, after watching Jesus of Nazareth starring Robert Powell, he reenacted the Passion and Crucifixion in his backyard. According to Catholic News Agency, Roumie described constructing a cross from wooden planks, fashioning a crown of thorns from branches, and physically processing around his home in an early attempt to enter into Christ’s suffering.
The actor also spoke openly about being bullied during his childhood and how those experiences became a point of spiritual connection while filming Season 6 of The Chosen, which focuses on Jesus’ Passion and Crucifixion. “I was bullied as a kid a lot,” Roumie said, according to Catholic News Agency, explaining that reflecting on Christ’s meekness and suffering allowed him to unite his own wounds to those of Jesus.
During filming, Roumie said he consciously offered his past trauma to God as a personal sacrifice. “I had to offer up all of my past trauma to him as I was recreating it,” he said, according to Catholic News Agency, calling this offering part of his participation in Christ’s suffering for humanity.
Roumie also shared that before production began, he prayed that God would allow him to experience “a fraction of a fraction” of what Jesus endured. According to Catholic News Agency, that prayer was followed by real physical suffering, including a shoulder injury sustained before traveling to Matera, Italy, where Crucifixion scenes were filmed. The injury affected the same shoulder used to carry the cross beam, causing significant pain during filming.
“He gave me exactly what I asked for — just a glimpse,” Roumie said, according to Catholic News Agency. “I got to enter into it in a way that I had never entered into it before.”
Beyond the physical demands of the role, Roumie explained that portraying Christ has reshaped how he approaches the Mass and the Eucharist. According to Catholic News Agency, Roumie said he now feels “convicted to give more reverence to Christ in the Eucharist” and has begun receiving Holy Communion on his knees and on the tongue.
He recounted an instance when a priest asked him to stand while receiving Communion, an experience he later discussed with his spiritual director. Despite the discomfort, Roumie said he remains committed to expressing Eucharistic reverence. “I’m prepared to just wait as long as I need to until somebody concedes,” he said, according to Catholic News Agency.
Schmitz reflected during the interview that Roumie himself had been “chosen” not only to portray Jesus but to imitate Him as a disciple. Roumie responded that accepting the role has been a deeply transformative journey. “It wasn’t somebody else. He picked me,” he said, according to Catholic News Agency.
As the series approaches its conclusion after nearly a decade of production, Roumie acknowledged that the spiritual impact of portraying Christ will likely remain with him for life. “It’s something that I think I will always live with,” he said, according to Catholic News Agency, adding that he does not wish to let go of the connection it has fostered between himself and Christ.
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