During his lengthy decades-long career in Hollywood, Russell Crowe has had his fair share of on-screen showdowns. From tigers to gladiators and even hunting down a man for stealing a loaf of bread, Crowe’s characters have drummed up fear and anxiety in many of their enemies. But now he’s meeting his biggest match yet. In a trailer for the upcoming Julius Avery (Son of a Gun, Samaritan) helmed supernatural horror feature The Pope’s Exorcist, we get our first glimpse of Crowe’s deadly dance with the devil.
Comin’ in hot with an Italian accent, the trailer introduces viewers to Crowe’s Father Gabriele Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican, as he speaks to a table lined with his peers about his work. While we find out that 98% of most cases Father Amorth is tasked with are simply people who need to be under the care of mental health professionals, there is a troubling 2% who find their lives taken over by what the Father simply refers to as “evil.”
Although his peers are skeptical of his work, nothing they say can shake Father Amorth as he reports to the top man in Catholicism - the Pope. Sent on a special mission from his boss, we watch as the Father takes on a disturbing possession involving a young boy. While the local priest has tried his best, the demonic entity living inside the child won’t let up with Father Amorth being the family’s last option for salvation. As one would expect, the rest of the trailer includes a slew of head-turning-moments (literally), lots of quips between the demon and Father Amorth, and a cover-up carried out by the Vatican that will change everything the Father knows about the Church’s involvement with the devil.
A story that we’re surprised has taken this long to make it onto the big screen, The Pope’s Exorcist centers around the tales of the real-life Father Amorth who served the leader of the Vatican for years. The film’s screenplay, which was penned by Michael Petroni and Evan Spiliotopoulos from a screen story by Petroni, R. Dean McCreary, and Chester Hastings, is adapted from Father Amorth’s actual case files and on-site experience.
Joining Academy Award-winner Crowe (Gladiator) to bring the chills and thrills to audiences everywhere will be Daniel Zovatto (It Follows), Alex Essoe (Midnight Mass), Laurel Marsden (Ms. Marvel), Cornell S. John (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald), and Franco Nero (Django) with Ralph Ineson (The Witch) as the voice of the demonic entity.
Unearth Father Amorth’s personal stories in the trailer below and catch The Pope’s Exorcist in theaters on April 14, 2023.