Garth Brooks Shares His Thoughts on the Controversy Surrounding Paris Olympics Opening Ceremonies

With the 2024 Summer Olympic Games underway, the entire world turned its attention to Paris. While showcasing their rich history when it comes to music and arts, some took issue with the opening ceremonies when it appeared one segment was supposedly mocking the Last Supper. Featuring drag queens, the segment caused a firestorm of backlash online as many called for the games to be boycotted. As athletes continue to make history at the games, Garth Brooks recently opened up about the controversial moment. 

Speaking with Maria Taylor on NBC, Brooks took a different stance when it came to the opening ceremony. He said, “I thought it was great…I can tell you this, outside looking at France, how they’re reflecting their country to the rest of the world is beautiful. If you’re going to get the gold medalist of all singers, Celine Dion, oh my gosh. What a performance. And I gotta tell you, you might think this is totally crazy, I think that sets the tone for the games. And I think that set the tone for everything. The level of excellence, that bar was set pretty high…”

As for France’s inspiration when it comes to art, Brooks insisted, “France’s art, that they give to the world, I think, is all of a sudden discovered again. And I gotta tell ya, if I’m France I’m very proud, and let me tell ya from outside France you should be very proud.”

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Not Every Person Agrees With Garth Brooks

Although enjoying the opening ceremony and the festivities surrounding Paris, others like Piers Morgan weren’t so open to the idea. He tweeted a picture of the segment, writing,” Btw, what the f*ck was all this about? A drag queen mockery of the Last Supper at the Olympics? Would they have mocked any other religion like this? Appalling decision.” 

Defending the decision to include the segment, Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet added in a statement, “We imagined a ceremony to show our values and our principles so we gave a very committed message. The idea was to really trigger a reflection. We wanted to have a message as strong as possible. Naturally, we had to take into account the international community. Having said that – it is a French ceremony for the French games – so we trusted our artistic director. We have freedom of expression in France and we wanted to protect it.”

(Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)