The 31-second clip, viewed over 38 million times, shows the 88-year-old pontiff embracing Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, and others including Muhammad Ali and Tupac Shakur.
A viral AI-generated video depicting the late Pope Francis in heaven hugging famous deceased figures has sparked outrage online.
The 31-second clip, viewed over 38 million times, shows the 88-year-old pontiff embracing Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, and others including Muhammad Ali and Tupac Shakur.
Titled Pope Francis meeting some old friends, the video drew severe criticism for portraying the Pope with controversial figures, especially Michael Jackson, who faced multiple allegations of child abuse. “How dare you desecrate the Pope’s memory like this!” one user on X (formerly Twitter) wrote. “It’s blasphemous in the extreme.”
Others called the video “disgustingly creepy” and “dystopian.” Critics also questioned the inclusion of figures like Stephen Hawking, who did not believe in heaven. Pope Francis was buried Saturday in Rome, following a Vatican ceremony attended by global leaders. He served as the Catholic Church’s first South American Pope for 12 years before his death on April 21.