Pope Leo XIV watched the film Conclave before the vote “to know how to behave” during the election

It seems that the film Conclave An excellent starting point has proved to be an excellent starting point for the cardinals called to elect the new pontiff. What is certain, at least according to the words of John Prevost, older brother of Pope Leo XIV, It is that Pope himself, a few hours after the election, watched the film with Ralph Fiennes, Isabella Rossellini and Sergio Castellitto.

During the hours preceding the Conclave, John and Robert Prevost tried to lighten the tension by playing a Wordle And Words with Friends: “I wanted to distract him a little from reality, to laugh at something, because now he has a huge responsibility”, were the words with which John said The hours preceding the Conclave during an interview with NBC News.

From there the conversation moved to the Oscar -winning film (for the script) of 2024 adapted by the novel of the same name by Robert Harris who, in addition to having collected the generous figure of 119 million dollars at the world box office, in the face of a declared budget of $ 20 million, received enthusiastic reviews from critics, in particular for the surprise final.

Ralph Fiennes in a scene of the film Conclave.

Courtesy of Focus Features. © 2024 All Rights Reserve.

The film, although of fiction, is based on details very close to reality, processes and dynamics within the Vatican isolated, and describes political intrigues, gossip and rivalry within the Holy See that culminate in the election of an external surprise candidate. The feature film is currently a success streaming.

«I asked him: you saw the movie Conclave To find out how to behave? He replied that he had just finished seeing him to be prepared, “the brother of the current Pope explained in the interview. In real life, pope Leo XIV, Appointed cardinal only two years earlier, according to John, He doubted his possibilities about the pontificate: “I didn’t believe it and Rob did not believe it, because the attitude was that the time had not yet come for an American Pope.”

John Prevost, however, believed that his brother was still in the running: “What I read and felt was that there were three exceptional candidates for the first, second and third place: the Filipino cardinal, the Vatican Secretary of State and Robert”.

Prevost also shared The reaction of his family To the news that his brother had become the 267th pope of history and the first US pontiff: «He is totally unreal, totally surreal. It is an extraordinary thing to accept, but it makes us very proud ».