How Accurate Is the Movie ‘Conclave'? Inside the Film’s Depiction

Hollywood has long practiced making true-to-life films to great success, but while the entertainment factor is generally high, many wonder if the films are actually accurate. The recent success of Conclave and the death of Pope Francis have many fans questioning just how accurate the Ralph Fiennes religious drama is.

Released in October 2024, Conclave is about Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who organizes a conclave to elect the next pope but ends up uncovering all of the secrets and scandals of the major candidates.

According to the Catholic News Agency, there are things that the film gets right and a few that it gets wrong, but the overall consensus is that the film is fairly accurate.

One of the most accurate parts of the film, per the outlet, is the process immediately after the pope’s death. “The key figure in any papal transition is the camerlengo, or chamberlain, who is a cardinal given the key role of organizing the process during the papal vacancy,” the outlet said. “Cardinal Tremblay, the camerlengo in the film, breaks the dead pope’s ring of the fisherman — a real and famous process symbolizing the breaking of the seal of the late pope’s pontificate.”

Another aspect of the film deemed highly accurate is the setting and voting process to appoint a new pope. “The fictional conclave takes place in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel, as does the real conclave,” Catholic News Agency said.

“The conclave system was formalized in 1274, and its procedures are minutely governed today by the apostolic constitution Universi Dominici Gregis of Pope John Paul II, as amended by Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, and allows for no innovations on the part of the cardinals.”

Although the film has been praised for being more accurate than not, there are a few elements that don’t line up with the reality of the Catholic Church system. Per Catholic News Agency, one of the biggest inaccuracies in Conclave "is its depiction of the College of Cardinals as deeply divided among ideological factions and the papacy as a highly political rather than a spiritual office.”

“Characters invoke God’s name many times throughout the film, but Jesus is barely mentioned. None of the cardinals, despite being priests, are ever shown celebrating Mass, and the Holy Spirit — who is meant to be the “protagonist” of any conclave — is not mentioned once (apart from when characters make the sign of the cross),” the outlet said.

Additionally, the “In pectore cardinal” was also said to be inaccurate because the character “offers no documentation and no proof that he is who he says he is, and yet the other cardinals embrace him almost immediately.”

Also, the film’s big twist ending is also said not to be factual. Seminary rector Father Carter Griffin spoke to Catholic News Agency regarding the twist, saying that “a stable, secure, and well-ordered sexual identity is a necessary condition for priestly formation and ordination.”

The outlet also said that a biological female identifying as a male would not, in fact, be a male — and thus would be ineligible for the priesthood. “It is our individual and unique creation as either male or female that identifies us as man or woman, not our subjective feelings or choices,” Father Griffin told the outlet.