‘Conclave’: Read The Screenplay That Turns An Ancient Vatican Ritual Into A Modern, High-Stakes Drama

Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series spotlighting the year’s most talked-about scripts continues with Conclave, Focus Features’ high-stakes dramatic thriller from director Edward Berger. The screenplay is by Peter Straughan, who adapted the the book of the same name by Robert Harris.

Set in the halls of the Vatican against the backdrop of a papal conclave, the film stars Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Lawrence, a man of faith tormented by personal doubts, and delves inside the secretive power struggles within the Church.

The drama, which debuted at the Telluride Film Festival before it hit theaters in October, follows Lawrence, the dean of the conclave and right-hand man to the recently deceased pope. As the Catholic Church’s most powerful leaders gather to vote, Lawrence, already grappling with his faith and being thrust into a potential role as the next Pope, confides in his fellow cardinal, Bellini (Stanley Tucci), who aspires to the papacy.

“I remember the moment when I thought, ‘Oh, I want to do this.’ It was when Ralph’s character — he’s called Lomeli in the book — is giving a sermon before the voting has started, and he says, basically, ‘Give us a Pope who doubts’,” Straughan told Deadline.

“This was a few years ago, but we were already well on the way to the world we’re in now. The world we’re in now is a very polarized world. And I feel as I’ve got older, I’ve become much more suspicious of certainty. It seems to lead far too easily to contempt for others, and to violence, as we’re seeing all the time now. So, there was something about that reluctant hero — a doubting, uncertain hero — that felt very interesting and sympathetic to me.”

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The film’s pace, unfolding over 72 hours, offers a gripping glimpse into the secretive world of the conclave as the cardinals cast their votes in each round, with unexpected obstacles emerging, shifting the momentum of the election. Lawrence’s internal turmoil and the conflict of the cardinals mirror the external chaos unfolding in Rome and other cities, where terrorist attacks are used as a power play by openly racist Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) to secure votes. As secrets are exposed, even Lawrence is forced to make a difficult choice — one that could alter the course of history.

The film also stars John Lithgow, Lucian Msamati, Brían F. O’Byrne, Carlos Diehz, Merab Ninidze and Isabella Rossellini.

Check out the script below.