Last Supper Steal

Totally coincidental arrangement, honest...

"Okay, everyone who wants to be in the picture, go to the other side of the table. Hold it..."

—Leonardo, History of the World Part One

Imitating Leonardo da Vinci's painting "The Last Supper", often for promotional art. This works for a variety of different plots or events. If there is a character who is an example (or a subversion, or an ironic inversion) of a Messianic Archetype, or otherwise has some kind of plot-related parallel with the story of the betrayal of Christ, he or she will be placed in Jesus' position, frequently complete with downcast eyes and spread arms. The scene itself often has some thematic connection to the biblical Last Supper, whether it is a group shot of the series' team with a betrayer in their midst, or a gathering of friends that is a metaphorical "last supper" (like a group of coworkers planning to go their separate ways), a leader and his/her followers or supporters, or foreshadowing the death/persecution of the character in Jesus's spot.

Since Da Vinci's painting depicts the disciples' reactions to hearing that one of them will betray Jesus, the character placed in the "Judas Iscariot" slot (elbow on the table, second to the left of Jesus) may be a hint to viewers.

Examples of Last Supper Steal include:

Anime and Manga

• In the manga version of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, the S.O.S. Brigade ends their Drunken Montage during Remote Island Syndrome with this. Itsuki is John, Mikuru is Thomas, Kyon is James the Greater, and Yuki is Philip. Judas's face, as well as most of Peter's, is blocked by text. And Haruhi? Guess.
• It's cospay, but here's Sailor Scouts Supper.

Comic Books

• One issue of the Legion of Super-Heroes arranged the Legion of Super-Villains in such a manner, with Lightning Lord taking the center seat.
• Warren Ellis' Supergod has this as one of its final issue's covers .

Film

• Luis Buñuel's Viridiana has a party of drunken, looting beggars end posed as in "The Last Supper", causing an outcry from the Vatican.
• In Mel Brooks' History of the World Part One, Jesus and Pals commission Leonardo Da Vinci to make a group portrait. They pose for a second exactly as in the painting, as Brooks holds up a plate over Christ's head to match the halo in the painting.
  • Except that there is no halo in the picture.
• In the film version of Mash, when a character is contemplating suicide, he has his 'last supper'. Guess how the characters were arranged...
• One segment in Super Size Me is a painting that shows grotesque caricatures of various fast food mascots set up like "The Last Supper".
• In the intro to Zac Snyder's Watchmen film, the characters are set up to resemble "The Last Supper".
• In The Dirty Dozen, the Dozen have a victory feast to celebrate humiliating Colonel Breed in the war games before they go out on their official mission. The table layout fits this trope. Magot was sitting in Judas' spot.

Live Action TV

• Seen in promotional art for the last seasons of Lost and the reimagined Battlestar Galactica.
  • Of course, the former would be The Lost Supper.
• Done in an episode of That '70s Show.
  • Done in two episodes, actually.
• This promotional photo of House season 4. The Judas-hint variant is played straight, as in Finding Judas.
• The dinner scene at the end of the first series Christmas special of Shameless
• At one point in Spin City, Michael J. Fox's character finds that a former mentor of his (played by Christopher Lloyd) believes he's the Messiah. Late in the episode, he walks into a meeting room to find that most of the higher-ups are at a table with said crazy mentor, forming a Last Supper with him as Jesus.
• In an episode of Northern Exposure Chris finds himself in one of these in a Dream Sequence.
• Community, episode "Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples". Abed is Jesus.
• Done in an episode of Penn and Teller Bullshit, with Penn as Jesus as he goes around the table, killing the apostles representing the myths of organic farming.

Stand Up Comedy

• The cover of George Carlin's "When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?"
• Trevor Turan's Discworld spoof lecture on The Da Quirm Code (Discworld Convention, 2006) involved supposed hidden messages in Leonard of Quirm's portrait of the Ecksian prophet of Offler Gordon Yermate and his followers, titled Where The Hell's Breakfast?

Tabletop RPG

• Used in one of the illustrations to White Wolf's tabletop roleplaying game Aberrant, which depicts the meeting of Teragen, a faction of A God Am I mutants.

Theatre

• The Reduced Shakespeare Company play The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged) has a replica of the painting with cutouts for the heads of twelve disciples, whom two actors have to portray every one of. The cutouts come with labels naming the disciples, which helps audiences who might not remember St. Louis or St. Bernard being among them.
• Many productions of Jesus Christ Superstar do this.

Web Comics

• This Dueling Analogs.

Western Animation

• The DVD cover of Twelve Ounce Mouse uses fan art of the characters arranged as in "The Last Supper".
• In the South Park episode "Margaritaville" Kyle says he has "this feeling that one of you will totally betray me." Everyone gasps and freezes into Last Supper position.
  • Earlier in "Fantastic Easter Special", which mimicks Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, Professor Teabag shows Stan and Kyle a portrait of the Last Supper, which looks the same, except that there is a colored egg next to St. Peter, whom Teabag reveals to be a rabbit.
• This was used at the end of the season 16 The Simpsons episode "Thank God It's Doomsday" (where Homer discovers a mathematical equation connected with the end of the world and is sent to Heaven to stop God from carrying out His plan). After Homer discovers that his trip to Heaven was real and Moe's isn't a Japanese restaurant anymore, Homer sits in the center of a group of drunks and the picture freezes to a Last Supper style painting.
• Happened on the Dilbert series, where they thought Wally was God.