What Was the Controversial Scene in Last Tango in Paris?

By Robert Palmer

In 1972, Bernardo Bertolucci’s film “Last Tango in Paris” was released and immediately became a controversial topic. The film starred Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider and contained a particular scene that caused widespread outrage.

The film was about an American widower named Paul (played by Brando) who meets a young Parisian woman named Jeanne (played by Schneider) and they start a sexual relationship. The infamous scene in question takes place halfway through the movie when Paul uses butter as a lubricant during sex with Jeanne.

This scene raised eyebrows for many reasons. Firstly, it was highly explicit for its time, with full-frontal nudity and graphic sexual content. Secondly, it was controversial because the use of butter as a lubricant without Jeanne’s prior consent could be seen as non-consensual sex or rape.

The controversy surrounding the scene grew even more when an interview with Bertolucci resurfaced in 2016, where he admitted that he and Brando had conspired to surprise Schneider with the butter during filming. Bertolucci stated that he wanted to capture her raw emotions and did not tell her about the details of the scene beforehand because he “didn’t want her to act her humiliation, her rage.”

The revelation sparked public outrage, with many people calling for a boycott of the film and condemning Bertolucci’s actions as unethical and abusive towards Schneider. The controversy also reignited discussions about the treatment of actors on set and their right to informed consent.

In conclusion, the controversial scene in “Last Tango in Paris” involved the use of butter as a lubricant during sex between Marlon Brando’s character Paul and Maria Schneider’s character Jeanne. The explicit nature of the scene coupled with allegations of non-consensual conduct made it one of the most talked-about scenes in cinematic history.