Filming Jesus’ Crucifixion Left The Chosen Cast Overwhelmed With Emotion

“When the director called ‘cut,’ the scene ended. The tears didn’t.”

Vanessa Benavente, who portrays Mary in The Chosen, has opened up about the intense emotions surrounding the filming of Jesus’ crucifixion for Season 6.

She said some cast members were left “crying inconsolably” after cameras stopped rolling. During filming in Matera, Italy, Benavente sometimes had to remind herself that everyone was safe and that what they were portraying was not actually happening.

“This is not real,” she would repeat to herself as she tried to come out of the emotion of the scene.

Even after filming ended, she said some of those feelings stayed with her.

As The Chosen moves toward one of the most painful moments in the Gospel story, her experience offers a glimpse into just how emotionally demanding it was to bring the crucifixion of Jesus to the screen.