Jesus is gay and Mary likes weed. This is pretty much the premise of First Temptation of Christ which has sparked a worldwide outcry for Netflix to boot it out of their service.
Over two million people worldwide have already signed the petition created at Change.org demanding Netflix to take down the film parody starring our Lord and Savior in a really, nasty, and different light.
Netflix first released The First Temptation of Christ in Brazil last December 3 and has created a widespread clamor that can even rival the ongoing forest fires in the Amazon. The film parody depicts Jesus being in a homosexual relationship with his buddy named Orlando. Mary is also depicted as a woman who partakes in smoking weed.
The news has spread like wildfire over the internet with Christian and Catholic nations adamantly protesting for the parody to be taken down for good.
The First Temptation of Christ is the brainchild Porta dos Fundos, a Brazilian YouTube comedy act and has actually won an International Emmy award last year.
The comedy group said in a statement sent via email that they value artistic freedom through comedy and satire via diverse cultural topics regarding society. The group also strongly believes in the freedom of expression and its importance as a fundamental basis of any democratic country.
Fábio Porchat, co-founder of Porta dos Fundos and the actor who portrays Orlando, Jesus’ ‘friend’ spoke out on the controversy following the release of their parody film.
The actor said that the film does not instigate violence nor does it express that people should not be aversive towards people who believe in God. Porchat added that Netflix has not contacted them and that the streaming giant supports freedom of speech and expression. Porchat also stated that the show is like a Christian fairytale with Jesus choosing to follow God and squaring off with the devil.
Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s president and proud homophobe has stopped financial assistance for a handful of films that has LGBTQ+ stories but was vetoed by their federal court. Brazil is one of the most religious countries in the world having deep Catholic and Christian roots embedded in its culture.