Decades After the ‘Life of Brian’ Protests, John Cleese Is Now a Spokesperson for Organized Religion

While John Cleese has been behind some of the greatest comedies of all-time, the latter phase of his career has been a tad more questionable. In recent years, Cleese has starred in a Rob Schneider vanity project, participated in a cringey Australian roast and hosted an anti-woke talk show set in a medieval castle for some reason.

But even given those baffling career decisions, his latest gig was about as expected as the Spanish Inquisition.

Cleese is currently the face of The Revelation of the Andalusian Crush, which, per EuroWeekly News, is a “new international tourism campaign video launched by the Andalusian regional government” in order to “promote Holy Week,” timed to coincide with this past weekend’s Procesión Magna.

The ad, which runs for over a minute and was recently shared by Cleese on social media, finds the Fawlty Towers star visiting a Catholic confessional. He then mumbles vague narration about the importance of the Church over a supercut of crucifixes and religious imagery. “I confess it, it’s impossible not to take it seriously,” Cleese states. “I’ve seen a place where the eternal is part of everyday life. Even if you don’t believe it, you feel it.”

In his post, Cleese — or whoever runs his account when he’s not using it to feud with other ex-Pythons — claimed that he had his own “revelation” and “felt a faith that needs no explanation.”

Some fans were seemingly taken aback by the endorsement, considering that Cleese famously wrote and performed in perhaps the greatest satire of organized religion ever filmed: Monty Python’s Life of Brian. 

The comedy was famously targeted by religious groups and banned in several countries, including Ireland and Norway. The Catholic archdiocese called Life of Brian a "blasphemy" and the Pythons, including Cleese, received death threats. 

As a result of the controversy, Cleese, along with a visibly irate Michael Palin, even debated the Bishop of Southwark and Christian journalist Malcolm Muggeridge during a now legendary 1979 talk show appearance. 

But while Cleese may have been a non-believer at the time, he’s had a change of heart in recent years, claiming that after 25 years of atheism, he was less “anxious” about religion now. Although it wasn’t all that long ago that Cleese criticized the Catholic Church’s “teachings on abortion and homosexuality” claiming they “would not be recognized by Christ.” 

It’s possible that Cleese’s recent promotional effort, which obviously capitalizes on his past conflicts with religion, was born out of a genuine interest in religious tourism. Then again, it could be because he’ll promote literally any product or service for the right fee.