Rob Schneider slams Paris Olympics over ‘Last Supper’ parody

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Rob Schneider is lashing out at Olympic organizers over the controversial drag “Last Supper” performance during Friday’s opening ceremony.

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Christians around the world were left aghast during the ‘Festivities’ segment that recreated Leonardo da Vinci’s religiously themed “The Last Supper” painting with drag queens.

Da Vinci’s painting depicts the moment when 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 artists and dancers.

The ceremony’s artistic director Thomas Jolly tried to downplay the “Last Supper” complaints, saying it was meant to celebrate diversity and pay tribute to feasting and French gastronomy. Paris 2024 spokesperson Anne Descamps was asked about the outcry during an International Olympic Committee news conference on Sunday.

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“Clearly there was never an intention to show disrespect to any religious group. On the contrary, I think (with) Thomas Jolly, we really did try to celebrate community tolerance,” Descamps said. “Looking at the result of the polls that we shared, we believe that this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offense we are, of course, really, really sorry.”

But in a post on X, Schneider fumed over the controversial performance and said he would be boycotting the rest of the Paris games.

“I am sorry to say to all the world’s greatest athletes, I wish you all the best, but I cannot watch an Olympics that disrespects Christianity and openly celebrates Satan,” the comedian wrote. “I sincerely hope these Olympics get the same amount of viewers as CSPAN.”

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Schneider posted a still from the act in a follow-up message, writing: “Guys with their genitalia hanging out in front of children?! Drag Queens?! I wasn’t sure if I was watching the Olympics or if I was watching a school board meeting…”

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On Instagram, devout Christian Candace Cameron Bure called the staging “disgusting.”

“To watch such an incredible and wonderful event that’s gonna take place over the next two weeks and see the opening ceremonies completely blaspheme and mock the Christian faith with their interpretation of the Last Supper was disgusting. And it made me so sad. And someone said, ‘You shouldn’t be sad. You should be mad about it.’ And I’m like, ‘Trust me. It makes me mad.’ But I’m more sad, because I’m sad for souls,” the Full House alum said.

“I pray for my heart to break over what breaks God’s heart. And I just think about all the people that have rejected the Gospel of Jesus Christ or don’t know the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And in the Bible in Galatians (6:7-8) it says, ‘God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap. Because the one who sows to his flesh will reap destruction from the flesh. But the one who sows to the spirit will reap eternal life from the spirit.’”

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Bure ended her message by encouraging her 5.7 million followers to keep “sharing the gospel.”

“Don’t get tired of doing good. Keep sharing the gospel. And it’s not just for the people that like openly mock God. There’s so many people – there’s Christians out there that say, ‘Well I’m a Christian, it didn’t really bother me.’ Those people need to hear the gospel too. It’s the ones that are lukewarm about it that may think like, ‘Ah – I don’t want to ruffle any feathers. Live and let live. Let people do what they want. I’m just gonna stay in my corner and be quiet about it.’”

But the Hallmark star stopped short of calling for a boycott.

“There are a lot of great Christian athletes competing as well, but I want to cheer them on. I want to see God getting the glory. And I’m gonna watch,” she said, noting that athletes “had nothing to do with that opening ceremony,” she said.

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Former Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels also slammed the act, writing on X: “Dear fellow gays… We demand tolerance and respect but then make a mockery of something sacred for over 2 billion Christians. This type of hypocrisy and lack of understanding is a bad look. We get outraged when the extreme right bashes us, but then we do this s—. What kind of reaction do you think they will have toward the LGBTQ+ community after this. This is NOT how we break down barriers it’s how you build them.”

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The drag performance also drew the ire of Piers Morgan who wrote on X: “A drag queen mockery of the Last Supper at the Olympics? Would they have mocked any other religion like this? Appalling decision.”

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Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr. re-posted a photo of the depiction, saying, “They’re not even pretending anymore,” while billionaire SpaceX, Tesla and X owner Elon Musk called the parody “extremely disrespectful to Christians.”

As complaints continued to mount, organizers for the Olympics said the tableau was intended to raise awareness “of the absurdity of violence between human beings.”

“For the ‘Festivities’ segment, Thomas Jolly took inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting to create the setting,” producers admitted in the statement. “Clearly, there was never an intention to show disrespect towards any religious group or belief … (Jolly) is not the first artist to make a reference to what is a world-famous work of art. From Andy Warhol to The Simpsons, many have done it before him.”

— With files from The Associated Press

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