Paris Olympics organisers apologise for opening ceremony's unintentional Last Supper parody

Mia Nightshade

Updated Tuesday, July 30, 2024 at 12:00 AM CDT

Paris 2024 organisers have apologised to Catholics and Christian groups angered by a kitsch tableau in the Olympic Games opening ceremony that parodied Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper painting. Subscribe to Guardian Sport ► http://bit.ly/GDNSport The segment, which resembled the biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his apostles sharing a last meal before his crucifixion, featured drag queens and a singer made up as the Greek god of wine, Dionysus. This drew dismay from the Catholic church and the religious right in US. The creative director of the opening ceremony, Thomas Jolly, said: 'I did not intend to be subversive or to mock or shock … In France we can believe or not believe, in France we have a lot of rights and I wanted to convey those values throughout the ceremony.' The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://support.theguardian.com/contribute Website ► https://www.theguardian.com Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/theguardian Twitter ► https://twitter.com/guardian Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardian The Guardian on YouTube: The Guardian ► https://bit.ly/guardiannewssubs Guardian News ► https://bit.ly/guardiannewssubs Guardian Australia ► https://bit.ly/guardianaussubs Guardian Football ► https://bit.ly/gdnfootballsubs Guardian Live ► https://bit.ly/guardianlivesubs #LastSupper #ParisOlympics #Apology

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