Thousands sign petition protesting Paris Jackson playing 'lesbian Jesus' in a new movie

More than 250,000 people have signed a petition slamming a new movie in which Michael Jackson's daughter Paris plays a “lesbian Jesus”.

Habit has been directed by Janell Shirtcliff, and according to The Wrap, finds former Disney Channel star Bella Thorne playing “a street smart, party girl with a Jesus fetish who gets mixed up in a violent drug deal and finds a possible way out by masquerading as a nun”.

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Jackson appears to Thorne’s character as Jesus throughout the movie, which is described as being “in the vein of early Tarantino”.

But the movie, which finished filming prior to lockdown and is now in post-production, has raised the hackles of Christian groups.

Vivian N, of Beverly Hills, has called the project “blasphemous” in a petition which has, at the time of writing, received more than 260,000 signatures.

“Distributors haven’t picked it up as of yet, so let’s please spread awareness and wake people up to the Christianophobic garbage that is spread nowadays, but is somehow accepted and praised by society,” she says.

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One of those signing the petition added in the comments that 'portraying Jesus as a lesbian is heresy and wrong'.

As well as Thorne and Jackson, musicians including former Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale and Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart of The Kills also feature on the bill.

Thorne recently hit headlines after her x-rated directorial debut movie Her & Him debuted on the adult site Pornhub.