The First Temptation of Christ is a satire that depicts Jesus as gay. Created by Brazilian comedy group Porta dos Fundos, Netflix deemed it suitable for release in Brazil. It, however, faced stiff opposition in the country, with viewers even canceling their Netflix subscriptions in protest. Litigations were filed in Brazilian courts to stop Netflix from streaming the controversial content.
A court in Rio de Janeiro then ordered Netflix to stop showing the content in Brazil. It placed a blanket ban on the show’s release.
Netflix filed a counter case, which finally got it the desired results. The Brazilian Supreme Court itself overturned the ban, and decreed that banning any content goes against the freedom of expression, a freedom guaranteed by the democratic country.
Justice Dias Toffoli, President of the Brazil Supreme Court said, “The satire will not affect the Christian faith of Brazilians.”
As for Netflix, it can finally breathe a sigh of relief for standing up with conviction.