The Brazilian Supreme Court has overturned a previous ruling that, popular TV streaming service Netflix must remove a film depicting Jesus as a homosexual.

The film, The First Temptation of Christ, infuriated fervent Christians in the country and abroad

It is reported that two million people signed a petition which called for the show to be cancelled. The films’ production company was also attacked with Molotov cocktails in December of 2019.

To appease critics,  judge temporarily banned the film on Wednesday.

Nonetheless, Supreme Court President  Dias Toffoli said on Thursday that Netflix should be given the right to continue streaming the show on the grounds that freedom of speech was important in a democracy like that of Brazil.

One cannot suppose that a humorous satire has the ability to weaken the values of the Christian faith, whose existence is traced back more than two thousand years, and which is the belief of the majority of Brazilian citizens,” – Judge Dias Toffoli

Why has the film caused an uproar ?

The parody film of most Christian movies, was run as a Christmas special on Netflix. It was created by Brazilian YouTube comedy group Porta dos Fundos.

One of the attacker, a man has reportedly fled to Russia and has Interpol after him.

Reason for ban

Judge Benedicto Abicair ordered Netflix to take the film down on in abid to appease angry Christians temporarily until a final decision was made by a higher court (Supreme Court)

“Exhibiting the ‘artistic production’… may cause graver and more irreparable damage than its suspension,” the judge said.

The group behind the film , Porta dos Fundos said in a statement that it “opposed any act of censorship, violence, illegality, authoritarianism” and would continue to air its work.

Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro once said he would rather have a dead son than a gay son.

His son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, called the Netflix show “garbage” on Twitter, adding that Porta dos Fundos “do not represent Brazilian society”.