Isaac Hayes, a regular turn as the voice of Chef on 'South Park' since 1997, is leaving the show due to what he calls the "inappropriate ridicule" of religion, and says "There is a place in this world for satire but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry toward religious beliefs begins. Religious beliefs are sacred to people and at all times should be respected and honored. As a civil rights activist of the past 40 years, I cannot support a show that disrespects those beliefs and practices."
All of which seems a bit bizarre when you consider that he's completed nine seasons of a show that has mocked pretty much every religion, and regularly features cameos from a TV presenter Jesus Christ. So why, you might ask, is he leaving now, given that South Park has ridiculed organised religion from the off? Well, this time the show has parodied his own wacky religion. The 'Shaft' singer is a member of the Church of Scientology and has spoken publicly about his beliefs, which he calls "an applied religious philosophy".
Co-creator Matt Stone says: "In 10 years and over 150 episodes of South Park, Isaac never had a problem with the show making fun of Christians, Muslim, Mormons or Jews. He got a sudden case of religious sensitivity when it was his religion featured on the show." Stone explained that he and colleague Trey Parker "never heard a peep out of Isaac in any way until we did Scientology," and added "he wants a different standard for religions other than his own, and to me, that is where intolerance and bigotry begin."