Taye Diggs has joined the cast of Fox’s upcoming The Chosen Christmas special. Diggs will play Balthasar in The Chosen: The Three Kings, premiering Monday, December 14, at 8 p.m. ET on Fox, with streaming the next day on Hulu.
Diggs stars alongside Piter Marek as Melchior and Rahul Rai as Gaspar, the three kings of the title, with Sara Anne and Raj Bond playing Young Mary and Joseph. The Chosen creator Dallas Jenkins executive produces, alongside Ryan Swanson and Tyler Thompson.
The special tells the story of Jesus’s birth through the perspective of the three kings who traveled the farthest to witness it, following them on a dangerous journey sparked by an inexplicable light over Bethlehem that signals the fulfillment of prophecy, terrified of what a new ruler might mean for their own power, yet compelled to make the trip regardless. The Three Kings marks the third and final installment in The Chosen‘s Christmas trilogy, following 2017’s The Shepherd, which also served as the original series pilot and premiered on Facebook, and 2021’s The Messengers, which premiered in theaters. This marks the first of the three specials to premiere on a broadcast network.
Diggs brings credits including All American, Private Practice, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and The Best Man, along with Broadway roles in Chicago, Moulin Rouge!, Wicked, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Marek’s credits include The Blacklist, Chicago Fire, and Blue Bloods, while Rai has appeared in Ballard, Barry, and A Man on the Inside.
The Chosen is produced by 5&2 Studios, with the regular series having moved to Prime Video last year under Jenkins and 5&2’s broader deal with Amazon MGM Studios, which includes exclusive U.S. streaming rights and theatrical releases for future installments. Season 6 of the flagship series premieres November 15 on Prime Video, alongside other titles in the growing Chosen universe, including The Chosen in the Wild with Bear Grylls and Joseph of Egypt.
With the Christmas trilogy wrapping up on broadcast television after two previous specials found homes on entirely different platforms, The Three Kings reflects just how far The Chosen‘s reach has expanded since its earliest, far more modest beginnings on Facebook.