The Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony on Friday drew significant backlash from conservative and religious groups, including the tech company C Spire, which announced it was pulling its advertising from the event.
“We were shocked by the mockery of the Last Supper during the opening ceremonies of the Paris Olympics. C Spire will be pulling our advertising from the Olympics,” the company wrote in a post to X on Saturday.
The ceremony has been criticized for what some see as “wokeism” and a controversial depiction of The Last Supper, which featured drag queens from “Drag Race France,” reported Deadline.
The world is a stage, and Paris is a catwalk. 💅
The #OpeningCeremony is France’s largest nightclub. Celebrities are showcasing young French designer talent, while DJ Barbara Butch provides the tunes. The perfect moment for the last delegations to arrive. ✨ #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/zOzELw8n8a
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson posted to X, writing, “Last night’s mockery of the Last Supper was shocking and insulting to Christian people around the world who watched the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.”
He also discussed a “war on faith” and included a Bible verse in his post.
Last night’s mockery of the Last Supper was shocking and insulting to Christian people around the world who watched the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.
The war on our faith and traditional values knows no bounds today. But we know that truth and virtue will always… pic.twitter.com/s88c9ymG9j
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) July 27, 2024
NFL kicker Harrison Butker, who recently faced backlash for what some people called “sexist and homophobic” comments he made in May, also took to X to post a clip from the ceremony and a Bible verse related to God being “mocked.”
Thomas Jolly, who served as Artistic Director for the opening ceremony, spoke during a press conference Saturday and emphasized that the his choices were not meant “to be subversive, mock or shock.”
“My will is to say we are an immense ‘we’,” he added. “In France, we have the right to love each other, as we want, with whoever we want, in France we have the right to believe and not to believe. In France, we have many rights.”
The four-hour event featured a series of scenes along the River Seine, blending French culture and history with modern music, including performances from Lady Gaga and Celine Dion.
