by Chris Peterson
Boy George will no longer appear as King Herod in the London Palladium production of Jesus Christ Superstar, withdrawing just days before his scheduled August 3 debut.
The singer was one of several recognizable performers rotating through the role. His scheduled performances will now be covered by Richard Armitage.
The announcement arrived shortly after Boy George released “We Will Dance Again,” a pro-Israel song created with the assistance of artificial intelligence. The song references the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack at the Nova music festival, rejects characterizations of Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide, and criticizes musicians who have publicly supported Palestine.
The song generated immediate backlash.
Boy George’s manager, Paul Kemsley, announced that the singer would no longer appear in the production, saying the decision had been made out of respect for the producers, creative team, and the company.
For full disclosure, when Boy George’s casting was initially announced, we published a guest editorial expressing excitement about the casting choice. We later removed that piece after learning more about his criminal history.
In 2008, Boy George was convicted of falsely imprisoning Audun Carlsen. The court heard that Carlsen was handcuffed to a wall fixture and beaten with a metal chain. Boy George was sentenced to 15 months in prison, with the judge describing the treatment of Carlsen as premeditated, humiliating, and degrading.
That history also adds another layer to the current questions surrounding his professionalism.
When you have committed to a major theatrical production, releasing an intentionally provocative political song days before your first performance creates a completely foreseeable problem for everyone working around you.
The production had nothing to do with making this song. Yet they are the ones who now have to adjust. Richard Armitage must take on additional performances. Producers must respond to disappointed ticket buyers. The production has been pulled into a controversy it did not create.
Boy George’s manager praised the professionalism of the company. It is fair to ask whether Boy George showed that same professionalism toward them.
Then there is the bizarre decision to use AI to create a song about an ongoing war and humanitarian catastrophe.
Boy George has called the project an example of using AI positively and acknowledged that he would have struggled to write the song with another person. But perhaps struggling with another human being would have been useful here.
The show will go on without him. Given everything we now know, that is probably for the best.