Jesus Christ Superstar/Characters

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Alternative Character Interpretation can apply to just about any of these characters and YMMV highly. There's a reason why this play was extremely controversial when it came out. All interpretations are welcome but treat others' interpretations with the respect you'd want them to give yours.

Judas

• Alas, Poor Villain
• Anti-Villain
• Apologetic Attacker
• Beauty Equals Goodness: Depending on how you interpret his character, his being played by a balding middle aged man who hasn't shaved recently in the 2000 version either subverts or plays it straight.
• BSOD Song
• Doomed by Canon
• Driven to Suicide
• Evil Costume Switch: 2000 film. After betraying Jesus to the Pharisees, Judas takes off his jacket to show off his black shirt, and when he commits suicide, he now wears red.
• Ho Yay: With Jesus, turned Up to Eleven in the 2000 film...to the point where the last straw before his betrayal was catching Jesus and Mary Magdalene in a compromising position.
• Jerkass Facade
• Jerkass Woobie
• Knight in Sour Armor
• The Lancer
• My God, What Have I Done?
• Necessarily Evil
• Sour Supporter
• Supporting Protagonist
• Tears of Remorse
• Unwitting Pawn

Jesus

• Bishonen: Particularly Glenn Carter's Jesus.
• Born in the Wrong Century

If you'd come today you would have reached the whole nation / Israel in 4 B.C. had no mass communication

• Break the Cutie
• Celibate Hero
• Doomed by Canon
• Groupie Brigade
• Heroic Sacrifice
• Hurting Hero
• Incorruptible Pure Pureness
• Jesus Was Crazy: According to Pilate and Judas.
• Jesus Was Way Cool: According to Mary Magdalene, Simon and Caiaphas.
• Light Is Good
• The Messiah
• Too Good for This Sinful Earth
• Unwitting Pawn
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: At least from Judas and the Council's point of view

Simon Zealotes

• Bishonen: In the 2000 film.
• La Résistance
• Poisonous Friend
• Well-Intentioned Extremist

Peter

• Angry Black Man: Peter gets a bit of this in the 2000 film.
• Karma Houdini: Judas: Betray Christ once, suicide and eternal damnation. Peter: Deny Christ three times, become the first pope.

Mary Magdalene

• Getting Crap Past the Radar:

Mary: "And I've had so many men before, in very many ways, he's (Jesus) just one more."

• Hooker with a Heart of Gold: She's the holiest of ho's, alright.

Caiaphas

• The Chessmaster
• Evil Sounds Deep: He's the only bass in the show.
• I Did What I Had to Do
• Large Ham: "FOOOOOLS! YOU! HAVE NO PERCEPTION! THE STAKES WE ARE GAMBLING ARE TERRIBLY HIGH!"

Annas

• The Dragon: To Caiaphas.
• Smug Snake

Pontius Pilate

• Chewing the Scenery: Fred Johanson takes this to epic proportions in the 2000 film.
• Dreaming of Things to Come
• Large Ham/Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: "What? Doooooooo you mean by that? Thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat is nooooooooooooot! An aaaaaaaaaaaan! Swer!"
• Out, Damned Spot!: I wash my hands of your demolition!
• Putting on the Reich: In the 2000 film.
  • He ends up looking like a weird Expy of M. Bison.
• A Taste of the Lash

Herod

• Camp Gay
• Large Ham
• One-Scene Wonder: Especially when he's played by Rik Mayall.
• Sissy Villain

God

• The Chessmaster
• The Plan / Gambit Roulette: For the highest of stakes and with his own son's life as the ante.
• The Unseen