Is Conclave Based On A True Story? The Real-Life Inspiration Behind The Papal Election Movie

With the death of Pope Francis on April 21, 2025, there's a renewed interest in the process involved in electing a new pope. If you want to know more about the topic and you also enjoy a good character-driven drama, then you should think about watching the recent Oscar-winning film "Conclave," which follows a group of cardinals looking to pick out a new supreme pontiff. While it's not based on a true story (it's adapted from a novel of the same name written by Robert Harris), it's informed by the actual process undertaken by the College of Cardinals when a pope passes away.

Much like they do in "Conclave," the real College of Cardinals will now meet following the passing of Francis. The voting process will continue until one of the candidates gets a two-thirds majority. When that happens, the Catholic Church will have a new leader. That's one thing the movie gets right, but what else does "Conclave" capture about this fascinating and historic real-world event? Here's everything you need to know about "Conclave"

"Conclave" is about a fictional emergency within the College of Cardinals that occurs the day after the pope dies. Cardinal Thomas Lawrence (the iconic Ralph Fiennes) is its dean, and it's his job to sort through the contest's top four candidates.

Aldo Bellini (Stanley Tucci) is an American with a liberal point of view on Catholic doctrines who has been continuously overlooked by his peers and keeps failing to get the votes he needs to make it to the top due to his bombastic nature. Cardinal Joseph Tremblay (John Lithgow) is a Canadian moderate who seems mild, but isn't afraid to get dirty during the vote getting process. Cardinal Joshua Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati) is a Nigerian conservative with a secret connection to Sister Shanumi (Balkissa Maiga), a nun who has been recently transferred to Rome for mysterious reasons. Cardinal Goffredo Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) is a right-wing hothead who fails to separate creed from politics. Lastly, there is a fifth possibility — Cardinal Vincent Benitez (Carlos Diehz), a dark horse new kid on the block whose medical history is being intentionally occluded. 

Political machinations and dark secrets soon make themselves known as the cardinals jockey for position and try to climb to the top of the heap. "Conclave" ends with a final twist that places doubt on the best candidate's shoulders. It's ultimately up to Lawrence to sift through the dirt and pull out the right man — but will he manage to do it in time?

Naturally, some papal conclaves have been a little dramatic, but none have experienced suicide bombings, actual election interference, and the unveiling of secret love children. Yet, Robert Harris told Time that he was able to read what is allegedly a diary from an unnamed cardinal who participated in the conclave that elected Pope Benedict while researching his book, and one of his characters is loosely based on another unnamed real-life cardinal. "There was also a great liberal cardinal from Milan who was expected year after year to become the pope. He was always the favorite, but he only came third after the first ballot. That's the Stanley Tucci character in the movie and sets up the human drama, the man who's waited all his life only for it to slip away from him," Harris explained. 

The twist ending is all fictional, of course, but it's worth noting that the general accuracy of "Conclave" seems to be right on the money. "The film gets a lot right. They tried to reproduce the mise-en-scene of the Vatican accurately," William Cavanaugh, a Catholic studies professor at DePaul University in Chicago, told The Associated Press. This is unsurprising, seeing as an on-set consultant was used to ensure that the film was as accurate as possible. Even some things that seem wrong are actually right — for example, a Vatican spokesman has confirmed that cardinals are allowed to pop out for smoke breaks during conclaves.

What does the film get wrong about the conclave process? Cardinal Vincent Benitez has been made a cardinal in pectore — done in secret by the previous pope before his death. This means he wouldn't be eligible to take part in the conclave, let alone be a possible electorate. Several characters also commit mortal sins that would get them excommunicated from any church, including Cardinal Lawrence, who breaks the seal of confession and gets away with it. But those small inaccuracies are definitely worth enduring for such a fun and dramatic film.