26 Million Facebook Users Change Profile Picture with Rainbow Pride Filter

If you've noticed that your Facebook news feed looks a lot gayer, you can thank Facebook's rainbow pride filter. According to CNN 26 million social media users have used the website's free tool to transform their profile picture from drab to fab.

The filter launched Friday after the Supreme Court made a landmark ruling, legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states. CNN reports the tool went viral over Pride weekend, earning more than half a billion likes and comments from all around the world.

A number of celebrities even used the filter, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ellen DeGeneres, Anne Hathaway, Elizabeth Warren, Elizabeth Banks, Ariana Huffington, Mark Zuckerberg, Elizabeth Warren and Russell Simmons.

CNN reports the filter was created by two Facebook interns and the company saw the tool's potential and streamlined the process so Facebook users could easily add a rainbow filter over their profile picture.

The filter has caused some controversy, however. After Schwarzenegger changed his photo, one fan commented on his picture, asking what was wrong with him and that he was going to have to unlike the 67-year-old actor's page. Schwarzenegger's response?

"Hasta la vista."

The pro-gay tool also made an impact overseas. It was reported Monday that anti-gay Russian lawmaker Vitaly Milonov called for a ban on Facebook over the rainbow filter, calling the feature a "flagrant violation" of the country's gay propaganda law, which he helped create.

"It is a crude violation of Russian legislation. Facebook has no age limits, it is impossible to control how many minors are there," he said. "That is why it would be completely normal to pull the plug on Facebook in Russia."

The BBC reports other Russians aren't accepting the rainbow filter and have made counter filters of national flags. One app has been downloaded more than 4,000 times.

"Our response to the rainbow world #?Proudtoberussian," one comment reads.

The BBC also notes the same backlash is coming from the Middle East.

"It's a message that it hurts me," said Egyptian Twitter user Sharif Najm.

Rami Isa from Syria tweeted: "Damn you and your marriage. You have distorted our innocent childhood [symbol], we used to like the rainbow."

Ahmad Abd-Rabbuh, an Egyptian political science professor, wrote same-sex marriage "is not in harmony with society and culture."