Saturday Night Live alum Rob Schneider is boycotting the ongoing Paris Olympics over a controversial opening ceremony he deems a Satanic display that “disrespects Christianity.”
“I hate to say to ALL the BEST ATHLETES in the world that I wish you ALL THE BEST, but I cannot watch an Olympics that disrespects Christianity and openly celebrates Satan,” the 60-year-old wrote on X.
Paris Olympics organizers apologized to anyone offended by a painting evoking Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” during the glamorous opening ceremony, but defended the concept behind it on Sunday.
Da Vinci’s painting depicts the moment Jesus Christ declared that an apostle would betray him. The scene during Friday’s ceremony featured DJ and producer Barbara Butch, an LGBTQ+ icon, flanked by drag performers and dancers. One backup dancer appeared to have his genitals exposed during the ceremony.
“Guys with their genitals exposed in front of children?!” Schneider wrote in another post. “Drag queens?! I wasn’t sure if I was watching the Olympics or a school board meeting…”
Saturday Night Live alum Rob Schneider, 60, is boycotting the ongoing Paris Olympics
Echoing criticism from others, Schneider said the ceremony celebrates Satan.
Schneider is not the only person offended by the opening ceremony.
Religious conservatives around the world condemned the segment, with the French Catholic Church’s bishops’ conference deploring the “mocking scenes” that they said constituted a mockery of Christianity, a sentiment echoed by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
The Anglican Communion in Egypt expressed “deep regret” on Sunday, saying the ceremony could cause the IOC to “lose its distinctive sporting identity and humanitarian message.”
Donald Trump Jr. has also attacked the director’s intentions, calling them “satanic.”
“My mother was an Olympian (on the Czech national ski team) and as kids we were excited in the weeks leading up to the games,” Trump Jr. wrote on X, repeating the false and debunked claim that the late Ivana Trump was a member of the 1972 Czechoslovak Olympic team.
“Now, with the ever-predictable (and seemingly satanic to me) drag queen opening ceremonies and endless nonsense, no one I know even thinks about it beyond maybe watching a few highlights,” he continued.
But despite all the talk about the director’s alleged “satanic” intentions, the scene may have been misinterpreted.
The ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, had distanced his scene from any parallels to “The Last Supper” after the ceremony, saying its purpose was to celebrate diversity and pay tribute to French feasting and gastronomy.
Paris 2024 spokeswoman Anne Descamps was asked about the protest during an International Olympic Committee press conference on Sunday.
“It’s clear that we never intended to disrespect any religious group. On the contrary, I think that with Thomas Jolly we really tried to celebrate community tolerance,” Descamps said.
“If you look at the survey results we have shared, we believe that this goal has been achieved. If anyone has felt offended, we are of course very sorry.”
Rottenhammer and Bruegel’s ‘The Banquet of the Gods’, circa 1602, depicts the same scene.
Jolly explained his intentions to The Associated Press after the ceremony.
“I don’t mean to be subversive, or to mock or to shock,” Jolly said. “Above all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not to divide at all.”
However, the LGBTQ+ athletes seemed to have a great time. British diver Tom Daley posted a photo of himself recreating the famous scene between Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio from ‘Titanic’, only with the roles reversed: he was on the bow of the ship with his arms outstretched, while rower Helen Glover held him from behind.
When a gigantic silver dome rose to reveal Singer Philippe Katerine reclining Standing on a crown of fruit and flowers, practically naked and painted blue, the audience who did not believe he was Papa Smurf may have guessed that he represented Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and ecstasy.
But unless you speak French, you might not have caught the sassiness of his lyrics.
“Where to hide a gun when you’re completely naked?” he sang, pointing to his groin. “I know where you’re thinking. But that’s not a good idea.”
“There will be no more rich or poor when you are naked again. Yes,” Katerine continued.
Decades after Brigitte Bardot sang ‘Naked in the sun’ This was Paris’s reminder that we all started life in our birthday suits, so where’s the shame?