A Paris court has issued suspended jail terms and financial penalties for the online harassment of Thomas Jolly, the director behind the controversial “Last Supper” parody.
In France, seven individuals have been sentenced for cyberbullying Thomas Jolly, the artistic director responsible for the Paris 2024 Olympics’ opening ceremony, which featured LGBTQ themes.
The opening ceremony included a segment interpreted by some as a reimagining of Leonardo DaVinci’s ‘Last Supper,’ showcasing drag queens, homosexuals, transsexuals, and a pro-obesity activist portraying Christ.
The spectacle drew criticism from Christians and Muslims globally, many of whom voiced their discontent on social media. Following the event, Paname 2024, the production company, reported online harassment and death threats directed at its staff.
Jolly, denying the scene’s inspiration from the ‘Last Supper,’ also filed a complaint citing “homophobic and anti-semitic threats and insults.”
French authorities arrested seven individuals in October, including one woman, for allegedly posting hateful messages aimed at Jolly, including remarks such as “degenerate Jew,” “slut,” “God will not forget you” and “you will pay for having disrespected our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Paris Criminal Court on Monday convicted the seven defendants of “repeated death threats, cyberbullying and aggravated insults based on sexual orientation or real or supposed religious affiliation” against Jolly.
The court handed down suspended fines ranging from €2,000 to €3,000 ($2,260-$3,395), along with suspended prison sentences of two to four months. The defendants were also ordered to pay one euro in damages to the artistic director.
In addition to the penalties, the court mandated that the seven defendants, aged 22 to 79, complete a five-day citizenship course. Furthermore, the X accounts of two of the accused will be suspended for six months.
These posts occurred amidst widespread condemnation of the Olympic opening ceremony from the Christian community, with the Bishops’ Conference of France asserting that it “mocked and ridiculed” their faith. The Vatican expressed “sadness” over the ceremony, stating it offended numerous Christians and believers of other faiths.
The Russian Orthodox Church described the performance as a “counterculture of godlessness” emerging in Europe. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the church’s head, viewed it as evidence of the decline of moral values and the “downward trajectory of the spiritual-cultural component of Western civilization.”
The resulting controversy led the International Olympic Committee to issue an apology and remove the opening ceremony video from online platforms.
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