Jordan Walker Ross, who plays the apostle Little James on the faith-based series “The Chosen,” has endorsed Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico, helping launch a new outreach effort called “Faithful Texans for Talarico” aimed at religious voters ahead of November’s election.
In a campaign video released Thursday, Ross argued that Talarico’s actions, not just his words, set him apart.
“A lot of politicians like to talk about Christian values, but you don’t really see that reflected in their legislation or the way that they live, but you do see that in the way that James lives. He loves his neighbor; he takes care of the needy, the sick, the immigrant,” Ross said.
Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian, is running against Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who rolled out his own faith coalition, “Pastors for Paxton,” with 27 faith leaders the same week.
A spokesperson for Paxton’s campaign pushed back hard on Talarico’s appeal to Christian voters, telling Fox News Digital that the Democrat distorts his faith to support positions they called out of step with Christianity.
“Everything about James Talarico is fake,” the spokesperson said. “He uses his beliefs to justify his most radical positions, all while calling himself ‘a Christian who hates Christianity.’ In Talarico’s twisted version of Christianity, a follower of Christ is required to bend the knee at the altar of the radical trans agenda, disavow the oil and gas industry, support late-term abortion, and open the door to every criminal illegal immigrant seeking asylum. I’m still looking through the Bible to find those passages, but I wouldn’t call it Christian.”
A Fight Over Film Subsidies
The endorsement also drew fire from state Rep. Brian Harrison, R-Texas, who argued that taxpayer-funded film incentives are effectively subsidizing an actor campaigning for a Democrat.
“Your money is being used to help elect Democrats like James Talarico,” Harrison said on X.
Harrison pointed to Texas Senate Bill 22, which expanded the state’s film incentive program. According to Texas Film Commission records, The Chosen Texas LLC received about $862,527 for its second season in 2022 and another $1.995 million for its fourth season in March 2025 — roughly $2.86 million total. Both payments came before the new legislation took effect in September 2025.
Harrison called the film incentive program a “socialist scheme to give billions of tax dollars to rich, woke, Hollywood leftists” and said production offsets “directly or indirectly” help fund actor salaries. He said he plans to introduce legislation next session to repeal the subsidies.
Ross defended the incentive program and rejected the notion that an actor’s political views should affect access to film funding.
“The growing film industry in TX creates thousands of jobs for Texans who fall on both sides of the aisle,” Ross said in a statement Sunday. “For Harrison to suggest that those opportunities should be taken away simply because some actors — like myself — endorse Democratic candidates is unconstitutional. One of the beautiful things about our country is the right to voice our opinions and I encourage my fellow actors/filmmakers (on the right AND left) to do the same.”
He added: “I believe it’s time for a change and that James Talarico offers a clear vision for how to create those changes.”
Questions About Religious Authority
Brittany Hughes, a video host at the Media Research Center, questioned whether playing an apostle on television gives Ross standing to speak on Christian doctrine.
“As is any American, Ross is free to vote for whatever candidate he chooses,” she said. “But American voters aren’t obligated to take a theological lesson from an actor simply because he plays an apostle on TV. It’s a simple fact that many of Talarico’s public positions are in total opposition to basic Christian principles — his support for so-called gender transitioning, for example, which is completely at odds with the biblical description of God having created us male and female separately and for separate purposes.”
Lisa Cusack, president of the Don’t L.A. My Burbank PAC, doubted the endorsement would move many votes and warned it could backfire with the show’s own audience.
“I highly doubt this will help Talarico with voters, but Ross’ outspoken progressive politics could alienate Christian audiences from The Chosen. Christians and Texas voters can see through this kind of set piece Christianity. Theater kids generally make terrible political pundits,” Cusack said.
Ross said he doesn’t see political disagreement as a barrier to connecting with fans of the show.
“As a progressive actor on a TV show with a largely conservative audience, I’ve had so many wonderful opportunities to engage in challenging conversations with my fans and I also do so from a place of compassion and curiosity. When we do that, we can learn so much from one another,” he said.
Talarico and the Texas Film Commission did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
