Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Jesus Christ Superstar” has always drawn criticism for its blasphemous interpretation of Scripture, but this latest iteration — a three-night performance with “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo portraying Jesus — has, according to some, crossed into the realm of the “demonic.”
Erivo, a 38-year-old woman, identifies as a queer bisexual and is a strong advocate of non-binary identities despite claiming to be Catholic, telling Elle last year she has “a deep belief that God makes people as they’re meant to be.”
“This is demonic,” wrote Kevin Sorbo, a Christian actor who posted a clip of Erivo, whose arms were stretched across a crossbeam as she wore a crown of thorns while stumbling toward her costar, openly gay singer Adam Lambert, who portrayed Judas Iscariot in the production.
This is demonic.
— Kevin Sorbo (@ksorbs) August 3, 2025
pic.twitter.com/d4mFqK6n5z
Sorbo was hardly the only critic sounding the alarm about the performance, which ran Aug. 1-3 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California.
Others, like The Federalist CEO Sean Davis, wrote on X that Erivo’s bald look and long nails resembled Nosferatu, an ancient Romanian word believed to mean “vampire.”
Cameron Bertuzzi, the founder of the Capturing Christianity YouTube channel, shared a similar perspective about the performance, which he likewise said appeared “demonic.”
In response to Lambert’s defense of Erivo, in which he claimed the teachings of Jesus should “transcend gender,” Bertuzzi, who is Catholic, condemned the “religious illiteracy” in Hollywood.
“Christians probably want a historical figure, a male historical figure, their literal Messiah, they want Him to be portrayed by a male, someone who at least has the same gender as Him,” he said.
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Kristan Hawkins, a podcaster and president of Students for Life of America, also rebuked Erivo’s performance as “intentional blasphemy.”
“It’s no surprise she looks exactly like how demons have always been portrayed,” she wrote. “And let’s be real … if you dress like a demon, act like a demon, and mock God like a demon … don’t be shocked when people call it what it is. This is intentional blasphemy from Hollywood.”
Christopher Calvin Reid, a Christian podcaster from Huntsville, Alabama, called out Erivo’s casting as “a blasphemous, woke abomination that mocks Christ’s divinity and proves the left’s contempt for biblical truth.”
“The Bible is unequivocal: ‘The Word became flesh’ (John 1:14), incarnate as a man, not a genderless symbol for progressive fantasies,” he wrote on X. “Erivo’s casting isn’t just unbiblical — it’s a deliberate desecration, reducing Christ to a prop for cultural Marxism.”
He continued, “It is clear that this is the left spitting on the cross, trading divine truth for a woke applause track. Erivo’s liberal activism only deepens the insult, signaling a rejection of Christ’s divinity for political posturing. This isn’t art; it’s evil — a blasphemous middle finger to God, cheered by Democrats who’d rather bow to Hollywood than the Bible.”
“Christians must reject this sacrilege, for it erodes the sacred, inviting divine judgment while the left cackles in their echo chambers,” Reid added.
As for Erivo, in February, she wrote in an Instagram post that she was looking forward to the role.
This was not Erivo’s first time playing a role in “Jesus Christ Superstar.” In 2020, she portrayed Mary Magdalene in an all-female rendition of the rock opera.
Nevertheless, her latest performance as Jesus was immediately called out as “blasphemy” and “mocking Christ the King.”
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