"The Chosen" Season 3 Finale is Number One at the Box Office!

This two-episode special engagement knocks the "Avatar" sequel from its perch on opening night.

Luke Dimyan, who plays Judas Iscariot, appears in a scene from Season 3. Image: "The Chosen."

Wow, what an achievement for The Chosen, which not only claimed the top spot at the box office last night, but also became the first production to displace Avatar: The Way of Water after a 48-day run in first place. According to Deadline magazine, The Chosen Season 3 Finale brought in $1.67 million, putting it well clear of Avatar, which earned just over $1 million.

This finale will only be in theaters for four more days, which no doubt partially explains last night's revenue, but it is nevertheless hard to overstate the performance, especially since each of the two episodes in the production - episode seven and episode eight - will stream for free next week. Of course, this series about the life of Jesus is a massive global phenomenon - it's been viewed more than 400 million times - so the fact that its fans turned out in force for the opening night release is not such a surprise.

This production will play in theaters through Monday, February 6th and you can purchase tickets to a local theater from distributor Fathom Events. Episode seven is scheduled to release on the show's normal streaming platforms on Sunday, February 5th at 7:00 PM ET (GMT -5) and episode eight will follow on Tuesday, February 7th at 9:00 PM ET (GMT -5).