Despite the decision of a lower court ordering the removal of ‘gay jesus’ TV show from Netflix, Brazil’s highest court is backing Netflix for the come
Despite the decision of a lower court ordering the removal of ‘gay jesus’ TV show from Netflix, Brazil’s highest court is backing Netflix for the comedy depicting Jesus in a gay relationship.
The head of the Supreme Federal Court, Judge Antonio Dias Toffoli, sided with the streaming platform’s appeal against a temporary injunction banning the movie. It denied the idea that the movie was insulting to Christians.
“One cannot suppose that a humorous satire has the ability to weaken the values of the Christian faith, whose existence is traced back more than two thousand years, and which is the belief of the majority of Brazlian citizens,” the judge said.
The film, entitled ‘The First Temptation of Christ,’ by the Brazilian production company Porta dos Fundos, came out on 3 December and drew strong criticism from conservative politicians in the mainly Catholic country, from the church itself and from evangelicals.
It depicts Jesus returning home with his boyfriend Orlando after 40 days in the desert, as Mary and Joseph plan a surprise party for Jesus’s 30th birthday. The satirical comedy was still available on Netflix yesterday.
“We strongly support artistic expression and we will fight to defend this important principle, which is the heart of great stories,” a spokesperson for the on-demand platform said.
In a statement, Porta dos Fundos said it “opposed any act of censorship, violence, illegality, authoritarianism” and vowed to continue broadcasting its work.
On Christmas Eve, the production company’s headquarters in Rio de Janeiro was attacked with Molotov cocktails. No one was hurt. Police said several men with their faces covered took part in the assault.
Police have identified a man named Eduardo Fauzi as a suspect after analysing security camera footage. He fled to Russia. The federal police asked Interpol Tuesday to issue a Red Notice for Fauzi, Brazil’s state media reported.
A “red notice” is a request to police across the world to provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender or similar legal action. It is not an arrest warrant.
