Netflix was ordered to remove a controversial comedy special that depicts Jesus as gay by a Brazilian judge
- A Brazilian judge in Rio de Janeiro has ordered Netflix to remove "The First Temptation of Christ," a controversial Christmas comedy special that depicts Jesus as gay.
- The judge, Benedicto Abicair, made the ruling after a conservative Catholic group in Rio de Janeiro filed a legal complaint, according to The Washington Post.
- The ruling is temporary until a final ruling is made by a higher court, the BBC reported.
- A Change.org petition calling for the special's removal has over 2 million signatures.
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A Brazilian judge in Rio de Janeiro has ordered Netflix to remove a controversial Christmas comedy special that depicts Jesus as gay.
The 46-minute, Portuguese-language comedy special, called "The First Temptation of Christ," sparked online petitions last month with millions of signatures calling for its removal from the streaming giant. One Change.org petition has 2.3 million signatures and another from the conservative group CitizenGo has 1.4 million signatures.
The judge, Benedicto Abicair, made the ruling after a conservative Catholic group in Rio de Janeiro filed a legal complaint, according to The Washington Post. The ruling is temporary until a final ruling is made by a higher court, the BBC reported.
"The consequences of the dissemination and exhibition of 'artistic production' ... are more likely to cause more serious and irreparable damage than its suspension," Abicair wrote in his ruling.
Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of Brazil's far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, called the special "garbage" on Twitter, according to the BBC. He said that the Brazilian YouTube comedy group that made it, Porta dos Fundos, "do not represent Brazilian society."
Porta dos Fundos has made similar comedy specials for decades and Netflix has a stake in the group along with Viacom. The group's Rio headquarters were attacked with two petrol bombs on December 24 (three weeks after the special's premiere), causing a fire that was put out by a security guard. No one was hurt in the attack but Porta dos Fundos said in a statement that it "endangered several innocent lives in the company and on the street."
Fábio Porchat, the star of the special and the cofounder of the group, told Variety last month that the criticism of the comedy special was "homophobic."
"For some Catholics here in Brazil, it's okay if Jesus is a bad guy, uses drugs, that's no problem," Porchat said. "The problem is he's gay. No, he can't be gay. And that's interesting because Jesus is everything. God is black and white and gay and straight. God is everything. It's more homophobic to be insulted by a gay Jesus than to make Jesus special."
- Read more of Business Insider's coverage of "The First Temptation of Christ"
- Netflix is facing backlash over a Christmas comedy special that depicts Jesus as gay
- The star of Netflix's Christmas special featuring a gay Jesus called the backlash 'homophobic'
