Sex, Scripture, and Scorsese

When Hollywood and “The Last Temptation of Christ” Touched Off a Culture War Conflict (1988)

Summer is the season of blockbuster movies designed to draw enormous crowds. Since the success of “Jaws” in 1975, Americans have loved capping off a day at the beach with a spectacular film that captures their imagination, inspires them, or scares them senseless.

But as with almost everything else these days, movies can quickly become the center of a political firestorm. Nothing is safe from the culture wars. Last week on The Long View, I wrote about music. This week, movies were on my mind.

In August 1988, Martin Scorsese’s “The Last Temptation of Christ” caused a massive stir. The film was based on the 1955 novel of the same name by Nikos Kazantzakis. Scorsese optioned the book in the 1970s after receiving a copy from the actress Barbara Hershey (who ended up playing Magdalene in the movie). Paul Schrader wrote the screenplay (and some writing work by Jay Cocks as well).

When one of the greatest directors of all time, known for 1970s hard-hitting classics such as “Mean Streets” and “Taxi Driver,” released a film that depicted Jesus Christ (played by Willem Dafoe) as a real, flawed, and sexual human being, conservative religious organizations were outraged.

The movie came out in the last year of Ronald Reagan’s presidency, by which time the conservative movement had already been growing increasingly powerful for a decade. Evangelical Christians, a key part of Reagan’s coalition, reached new levels of political influence.

Movie Trailer:

Given the political times, and the subject matter, Scorsese and the studio anticipated controversy. While at one point the film was moved off the production schedule, Universal Studios moved it back on track, though with a tighter budget. During the filming, Universal enforced a closed set, using the title “The Passion” in order to protect their project from protesters. Scorsese’s publicist told the LA Times that they wanted to “throw off any possible religious protesters. The idea was to keep a very low profile.” Of course, word got out. Studio executives offered advance screenings for religious leaders in an attempt to allay their concerns. Generally, they failed to persuade. Reverend Donald Wildmon, head of the American Family Association, announced a boycott in July—though he had not yet seen the film.