Cardinals are watching ‘Conclave’, the movie before the Papal election; here's why it makes sense

Surprisingly, some Catholic cardinals are studying how to select the next pope by watching a movie. The film 'Conclave', starring Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci released just months before Pope Francis passed away. With the papal conclave on in full swing, a few of the 133 cardinals gathered in the Vatican to participate in the highly secretive process are drawing lessons from the 2025 film.

Cardinals watched Oscar-winning Conclave to get a better idea of a Papal election

The papal conclave started this Wednesday, and several of the 133 Catholic cardinals assembled in the Vatican for the highly secretive selection process, which involves multiple rounds of voting to choose the next pope—are now drawing inspiration from the film released in 2025.

After Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025, following a prolonged health struggle, the Oscar-winning film Conclave, starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Sergio Castellitto, and Isabella Rossellini experienced a surge in viewership of over 238%.

According to data from entertainment portal Luminate, on April 20, the day before the Pope’s death, the film recorded about 1.8 million minutes watched, which skyrocketed to 7 million minutes the next day. A Vatican cleric told the press that “some [Cardinals] have watched it in the cinema.”

What's more surprising is that the Cardinals are reportedly using the film as a guide to understand how the conclave might unfold. This is not too unbelievable because roughly 80% of those voting this week were appointed by Pope Francis and have never participated in a conclave before.

Conclave, the film provides a detailed portrayal of the voting procedures, the negotiations among cardinals, and the emotional and moral dilemmas faced during this historic process. Its realistic depiction offers viewers an inside look at the centuries-old tradition and complexity of selecting a pope.

For many, the film serves as a visual crash course, as it has been praised for its performances and, more importantly, for its detailed portrayal of the centuries-old papal election process, including voting procedures and what happens after the death of the pope.

The movie is directed by Edward Berger and written by Peter Straughan, based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris. Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, as he leads a papal conclave after the unexpected death of the Pope. He soon discovers a web of secrets and scandals surrounding the potential candidates, leading him to investigate a trail of secrets that could undermine the Catholic Church.