“A real stumbling block”- Michael Knowles reacts to Cynthia Erivo playing Jesus in the "Jesus Christ Superstar" Hollywood Bowl concert

Michael Knowles recently weighed in on Cynthia Erivo's portrayal of Jesus in the Jesus Christ Superstar concert at the Hollywood Bowl, which ran from August 1 to August 3, 2025. For those unfamiliar, Jesus Christ Superstar is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice that follows the final weeks of Jesus's life. This was initially released as a concept album before debuting on stage in 1971, according to Variety.

Meanwhile, in the August 4 episode of The Michael Knowles Show, host Michael Knowles reviewed Cynthia Erivo's performance as Jesus in the renowned musical.

"Cynthia Erivo looks a little bit funny sometimes. She's an actress. I'm not even commenting on her natural appearance. I'm saying she has really long, pointy, scary nails, lots of tons of tons of piercings, hunched over, and that's how Cynthia Erivo, a woman, decided that she would play Christ in Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl," Michael stated.

He also reviewed comments made by American singer Adam Lambert, who plays the protagonist Judas Iscariot alongside Cynthia. In an interview with Billboard, published on August 1, 2025, Lambert spoke out in support of Erivo amid backlash for portraying a female, Black Jesus.

Lambert stated that the Wicked actress's "voice, presence, and simultaneous power and vulnerability" blows his mind. He expressed excitement about presenting the audience with a "female, Black Jesus," claiming that it would encourage them to expand their minds.

He also emphasized that Jesus Christ Superstar is meant to "provoke and challenge" norms.

"Shouldn’t the teachings of Jesus transcend gender?" he questioned.

The American conservative political commentator reacted to Adam Lambert's remarks in his podcast.

"Let's just grant the premise that Christ's teaching transcends gender. Christ does not transcend gender, and this is a real stumbling block for people," Michael added.

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Michael Knowles criticizes Cynthia Erivo's portrayal of Jesus as not appearing "divine"

Furthermore, in his podcast, Michael Knowles expressed skepticism toward the creative choices made by the directors of the Jesus Christ Superstar musical.

"And all these people, these directors, 'Imagine though, what if Christ were Cynthia?'" Michael Knowles remarked.

He further criticized Cynthia Erivo's natural appearance in his podcast.

"It's the long, pointy nails. It's all of the mutilations, all of the piercings, and all the rest of it, being hunched over. It's this presentation that I think is intentionally or unintentionally doesn't quite look divine. That's the issue, and it comes out of a scandal," he added.

Meanwhile, Cynthia Erivo responded to the criticism she faced following the announcement that she would be playing Jesus in the musical at the Hollywood Bowl. In an interview with Billboard published on June 2, Cynthia stated that most of the negative comments failed to understand the critical perspective used in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

"You can’t please everyone. It is legitimately a three-day performance at the Hollywood Bowl where I get to sing my face off. So hopefully they will come and realize, 'Oh, it’s a musical, the gayest place on Earth,'" she added.

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Cynthia Erivo's next film role will be in Wicked: For Good, the sequel to the 2024 hit film Wicked. She will reprise her role as Elphaba alongside singer Ariana Grande, who returns as Glinda.

Edited by Meenakshi Ajith