A controversial Netflix Christmas special has caused outrage among the Christian community for its depiction of Jesus, after imagining him as a gay man in a same-sex relationship.
“The First Temptation of Christ”, which was created by a YouTube-based comedy group “Porta dos Fundos”, aired on the Brazilian version of the streaming service on December 3rd. However, since its debut, the show has been subject to a 1.5 million-strong petition, with signatories claiming that it has “seriously offended” Christian viewers.
The indignant request, which has caused quite a stir online, calls for:
“...banning the Christmas movie from “Porta dos Fundos”, which is titled "The First Temptation of Christ." For removing the film from the Netflix catalog and for Porta dos Fundos to be held responsible for the crime of villainous faith. We also want public retraction, as they have seriously offended Christians.”
Watch the trailer for the film here:The synopsis of the show on Netflix reads:
“Jesus, who’s hitting the big 3-0, brings a surprise guest to meet the family. A Christmas special so wrong, it must be from comedians Porta dos Fundos.”
Several signatories have given their reasons for supporting the petition, with one commentator writing, “Backdoor has no originality to make comedy and what does? Religious Prejudice!” and another adding the film should be banned “For the end of derision and disrespect for the faith of the Catholic Church and especially for GOD.”
The show, which is a one-off 46-minute special, has even solicited criticism from the world of politics. Multiple reports claim that son of right-wing populist president Jair Bolsanaro, Eduardo, wrote on social media:
"We support freedom of expression, but is it worth attacking the belief of 86 per cent of the population?"
Despite the outrage from certain quarters, there is no sign as of yet that the platform plans on removing The First Temptation any time soon.
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