Brazilian comedy group Porta dos Fundos has responded to the backlash it's received following its 2019 Christmas special hitting Netflix, saying that protesters are homophobic.
More than two million people had signed a petition against The First Temptation of Christ, a 45-minute show which dropped on the streaming service in Brazil on 3 December. Created by the people behind comedy YouTube channel Porta de Fundos, it depicts Jesus as gay.
Porta de Fundos co-founder Fábio Porchat has now said that the backlash is 'homophobic', with the petition asking for the show to be pulled from Netflix, or for the government to prohibit it.
Speaking to Variety, Porchat said: "It doesn't incite violence, we're not saying people shouldn't believe in God."
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He added that Netflix and Viacom, which fund Porta dos Fundos, are standing by it.
Porchat explained: "They [Netflix] haven't said anything to us like, 'Maybe we should stop making the special available.' They support freedom of speech."
The First Temptation of Christ starts with a 30-year-old Jesus returning from the desert with a new close friend, Orlando. Played by Porchat, Orlando is portrayed as gay, with his family throwing Jesus a surprise party.
God, who is shown as a human, says he is interested in Mary, who is then caught smoking weed by God. Joseph is jealous of God, and one of the Wise Men brings a prostitute to the party.
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Of course, all pretty out-there stuff, and obviously a huge joke.
But Porchat said that the suggestion of Jesus being gay is what has really upset viewers.
He explained: "We play at insinuating that Jesus has a new friend, and probably this new friend is gay, but they have just been having fun and a very good time in the desert for 40 days.
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"If anybody should be angry with us, it should be the gay community because a gay character turns out to be the Devil. But the gay community loves us!"
For Porchat, Jesus comes out of the show very well, as he said: "The show is almost a Christian fairy tale: Jesus faces off bravely with the Devil and then chooses to follow God, accepting to be his son, Jesus Christ.
"A lot of people, when they see the show, say: 'Oh that's what they were talking about? OK, that's OK, they're just having fun, no problem at all.'"
Porchat added: "For some Catholics here in Brazil, it's OK if Jesus is a bad guy, uses drugs: that's no problem. The problem is he's gay. No, he can't be gay.
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"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."
Featured Image Credit: NetflixTopics: Netflix