Many French people have reacted to the Olympic Games’ controversial opening ceremonies held in Paris on Friday, and not all responses are positive.
The opening ceremonies, held mainly as a boat parade down the River Seine, featured performances from international artists like Céline Dion and Olympian athletes onboard boats designated by country.
The ceremonies also featured a live reenactment of the Last Supper with drag queens and a ménage à trois sequence. The Last Supper, painted by Leonardo da Vinci, is not located in Paris but in Italy at the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie.
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The French Bishops’ Conference released a statement on X, saying «this ceremony unfortunately included scenes of mockery and derision of Christianity, which we deeply regret. We would like to thank the members of other religious denominations who have expressed their solidarity with us.»
«This morning, we are thinking of all the Christians on every continent who have been hurt by the outrageousness and provocation of certain scenes,» the French Bishops’ Conference added.
French President Emmanuel Macron defended the controversial opening ceremonies also via X, saying «Thanks to Thomas Jolly and his creative genius for this grandiose ceremony. Thank you to the artists for this unique and magical moment. Thank you to the police and emergency services, agents and volunteers.»
Macron added, «Thank you to everyone who believed in it. We’ll talk about it again in 100 years! WE DID IT !»
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Thomas Jolly, 42, is a French actor and theater director from Rouen who was brought on two years ago to direct the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Paris.
Not all French people equally admired the ceremonies, however.
Tony Estanguet, president of Paris 2024, French President Emmanuel Macron and Thomas Bach, president of International Olympic Committee, during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games on July 26, 2024, in Paris. (Christian Liewig – Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
One French X user, @JulietteBriens, wrote «As a sincerely patriotic French girl, I disolidarise myself from this freakshow and apologize to you, world.»
Her post featured screengrabs of the scenes considered most controversial from the ceremonies, including a close-up of the ménage à trois scene.
Another X user from France, @Arwenstar posted «As a French woman I am deeply embarrassed by this #OpeningCeremony and would like to apologise to the entire world for subjecting you all to this sick farce. Don’t hate us, it isn’t us, it’s the woke metropolitan elite – they ruin f****** everything»
Florent Manaudou, Flagbearer of Team France, waves his flag during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 on July 26, 2024, in Paris, France. (VCG via Getty Images)
A video has gone viral online of a French family reacting to the Last Supper reenactment, with the caption «POV: You’re watching the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games and you realize it’s the last season of the Smurfs.»
In the video, one member of the family can be heard shouting, «No no no no no no! What is that?!»
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According to reporting from Variety, a total of 28.6 million Americans tuned in to watch the Paris Olympic Games opening ceremonies.
