Isaac Hayes Upset About Show’s Portrayal Of Religion
Who’s going to sing to the kids of “South Park” about being smart in love? Not only that, who’s going to prepare their meals in the school cafeteria?
Isaac Hayes — the voice of Chef — has quit “South Park.” Hayes said he can no longer stomach the show”s take on religion.
Hayes acknowledged there’s a place for satire, but said there’s a time “when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry toward religious beliefs of others begins.”
Hayes is a Scientologist. Last fall, the show poked fun at Scientology and its celebrity followers, including Tom Cruise and John Travolta.
But “South Park” co-creator Matt Stone said it’s not all religion, it’s Hayes” religion. He didn”t come right out and say the word, but Stone is hinting strongly that Hayes is being a hypocrite when he says he’s leaving “South Park” because of the way it treats religions. Stone says he feels Hayes’ beef with the show stems only from the fact that the musician is a Scientologist and last year, the show began poking fun at his religion.
Stone said, “This is 100 percent having to do with his faith of Scientology. He has no problem — and he’s cashed plenty of checks — with our show making fun of Christians.”
Stone said they never heard a peep out of Hayes until they did a show on Scientology.
The episode that ran Nov. 16 and is being rerun Wednesday night is called “Trapped in the Closet.” It’s where church leaders see Stan as the second coming and at the same time, Tom Cruise locks himself in a closet.
In one scene, R. Kelly is called on to urge Tom Cruise and John Travolta “out of the closet” — in a take-off on the R&B star’s multi-episode song “In the Closet.” And in another, Stan is told he is the re-incarnation of L. Ron Hubbard and is wooed to become the group’s leader. As Stan is told about the beliefs of Scientology, a graphic on the screen said, “This is what Scientologists really believe.”
At the same time, the animated TV series has been equally critical of Catholics and Jews at various times.
Hayes said when he was first offered the job with “South Park,” he couldn”t believe they’d could get away with doing what they did on the air. Hayes recalled that when he was asked to do the voice for Chef, he asked co-creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker if they had good insurance — because they were going to get themselves sued.
Hayes said he had been urging his agent to get him work doing voice-overs. When he finally got word he was doing some voice work, he asked his agent if it was with Disney. His reply: “No, not quite.”