The work of content creator PJ Accetturo has received millions of views in the past week, and as he predicted, reactions are wildly mixed. Accetturo began using artificial intelligence to create irreverent vlogs of Bible characters, portraying them as social media influencers.
Think Jesus on the cross with a selfie camera, Noah narrating from the muck inside the ark, and Jonah inside the big fish, apologizing that he “just took a poop.”
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After seeing short film clips of Bible characters at the “Holy Vlogs” TikTok account, Accetturo decided to put his “years of trauma as a pastor’s kid to use and make a far more irreverent version that church folk will completely love or try to crucify me for.”
That prediction was accurate, with some viewers praising Accetturo’s fresh approach and others calling his clips blasphemous.
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AI Bible Characters Use Modern-Day Slang
In Accetturo’s vlogs, well-known Bible characters speak into the camera and describe their surroundings or predicament. A young Joseph shows off his “technicolor drip,” noting that his brothers look “so jelly” and “a little sus.” David explains he’ll be “yeeting this stone” at the giant Goliath, and a blindfolded Samson says he’s “finna crash [the Philistines’] party.”
A young Mary, upon learning she’ll give birth to the Savior, exclaims, “OMG, dude said I’m gonna be God’s baby momma.” While hanging on the cross, Jesus smiles while assuring viewers, “Yo fam, they don’t know that G-O-D is about to B-R-B.”
Some clips have been receiving more than 1 million views per day, according to Accetturo. In a website post titled “My God, what have I done? Jesus Christ, I went viral again. Please forgive me,” he shared the exact ChatGPT prompts he used. The process took just a few hours, he explained, costing about $100 in credits at the AI site.
“I grew up in church, so these were super fun to make!” Accetturo wrote. “I love all these bible characters and don’t think Jesus would find this particularly offensive, but some evangelicals are QUITE SENSITIVE, so this was probably a bit too far for mainstream Christian taste.”
Accetturo seems to be taking the reactions in stride, including the viewer who suggested he “generate a bridge and jump off it.”
Reactions Range From ‘Peak Cringe’ to ‘My Favorite Trend’
Some social media users said they appreciate this use of AI, while others condemned the vlogs as sacrilegious. These Bible characters are a “great way to spread the gospel, with a sense of humor,” wrote one viewer. Another said the clips are “by far my favorite trend right now.”
Other people used phrases such as “peak cringe” and “insanely disrespectful” to describe the film clips. “Satan didn’t have this on his bingo cards,” someone wrote. One complaint is that the characters’ skin complexion is too light.
