What did Candace Cameron Bure say about the Olympics Last Supper controversy? Co-star Jodie Sweetin comes out in defense of the ceremony

On July 28, actress and talk show panelist Candace Cameron Bure took to Instagram to share a lengthy post slamming the 2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, that happened in Paris on July 26. She said that the performance, seemingly mocking Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, made her feel “disgusting.”

"The Olympic Games have always brought me so much joy. It's the best of the best athletes in the world competing for the title. So, to watch... the opening ceremony completely blaspheme and mock the Christian faith with their interpretation of 'The Last Supper' was disgusting," Bure said.

In the wake of Candace Cameron Bure's statements, her now-estranged Full House co-star Jodie Sweetin had an opposite reaction and defended the performance on her Instagram Story on July 29.

"Tell me you don't know about art or history without TELLING me you don't know about art or history," Sweetin wrote.

The actress and TV personality reposted a video by actor and comedian Walter Masterson, who explained that the controversial Olympics sequence was a tribute to Greek mythology and Dionysus, not a parody of The Last Supper.

Jodie Sweetin's IG story on the Olympics opening ceremony. (Image via Instagram/@jodiesweetin)

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Exploring what Candace Cameron Bure said about the Olympic opening ceremony

Over the weekend, Candace Cameron Bure shared a lengthy post on social media giving her insights on the Olympics' inaugural ceremony controversy. She began her caption by saying how her initial opinion that the performance was an “interpretation” of da Vinci’s The Last Supper and not of the Greek God Dionysus, was met with ridicule.

“I still don’t see how that relates to unifying the world through competitive sports and is acceptable for children to watch. In any case, I’m not buying it… God loves each and every one of you and His desire is for you to know Him. I won’t stop praying and calling on Jesus’ name,” she wrote in the caption.

Candace Cameron Bure encouraged people to listen to her, read the gospel, share the messages from there, and “be bold in your faith.”

As for her video message, she began by stating that she didn’t want to “weigh in” on the Olympics opening ceremony debate “publicly” because she is always at a “risk of becoming a headline” but still chose to do it because “it felt too important not to.”

Candace Cameron Bure loves watching the Olympics each year. Her husband, former NHL star Valeri Bure, and other family members are Olympic medalists. She fondly remembers watching the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles with her family and friends, especially cheering for the marathon runners.

The former Dancing With the Stars contestant said that the Olympics have always given her “joy” and the chance to celebrate the “best” sporting talents in the world, adding that she was excited to watch the Games in the next two weeks.

Having said that, Candace Cameron Bure claimed to have been disgusted by the blasphemy and mockery of the “Christian faith” brought about by the inaugural ceremony.

"It made me so sad. And someone said, ‘You shouldn’t be sad. You should be mad about it.’ And I’m like, ‘Trust me. It makes me mad.’ But I’m more sad, because I’m sad for souls. I pray for my heart that breaks over what breaks God’s heart,” the 48-year-old shared.

Candace Cameron Bure then went on to read many sections from the Holy Bible and add her own interpretation of them. She encouraged people to hold on to their faith and be unapologetic about it. Candace Cameron Bure added that the gospels warn against mocking the almighty.

The Fuller House actress noted how she would eagerly watch the Olympics and “support” the “Christian athletes.” However, she urged people that if they felt like “boycotting” the event and didn’t have the “conviction” that it was all in good faith, then they were allowed to feel that way as well.

Candace Cameron Bure concluded by sharing how she wanted to see “God in his Glory” through the athletes’ performances, explaining that the participants deserve to be “cheered on” for dedicating not just the last four years but their “entire lives” to compete in such a prestigious event, and they had “nothing to do with the opening ceremony.”

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In brief, taking a look at Jodie Sweetin's contrasting take on the Olympics inaugural ceremony

In the wake of Candace Cameron Bure's post on the Olympics opening ceremony controversy, Jodie Sweetin too weighed in. She reposted LGBTQ advocate Matt Bernstein's Instagram post on her Story, which was captioned:

“The drag queens at the Olympics were recreating ‘The Feast of Dionysus,’ not ‘The Last Supper.’ And even if you thought it was a Christian reference — What’s the harm? Why is it a ‘parody’ and not a tribute? Can drag queens not be Christian too?”

It also contained a series of images including criticisms from the likes of Elon Musk and Piers Morgan and carried the text, “not the last supper, but THEY ATE.”

Jodie Sweetin even shared Walter Masterson's post explaining the Olympics opening ceremony was not an interpretation of The Last Supper but rather of Dionysus, the Greek God of wine-making, feasting, festivity, and ritual theater, as well as a reflection of the multifaceted French culture.

Notably, Candace Cameron Bure and Jodie Sweetin aren't the only ones with opposing opinions.

French theater director Thomas Jolly, who choreographed the controversial performance denied deriving inspiration from The Last Supper and said that his "idea was to have a pagan celebration connected to the gods of Olympus,” and not “mock,” “shock” or “denigrate” anyone.

He also claimed that he was inspired by Dionysus’ story from Greek mythology and took artistic and creative freedom for the portrayal.

However, producers of the 2024 Paris Olympics exclusively told The Wrap that “For the ‘Festivities’ segment, Thomas Jolly took inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting to create the setting,” adding he was “not the first artist” to refer to the “world-famous work of art.” They even cited that Andy Warhol to The Simpsons have done it before him.

French DJ, producer, and LGBTQ advocate Barbara Butch, who was at the center of the performance, also compared it to Vinci’s The Last Supper before she took it down.