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Russell Crowe stars in his first horror film ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’

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Cherry Pineda

<div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">Considering that Russell Crowe began his movie career over three decades ago, it’s quite surprising that he hasn’t done a horror film before landing the lead role in </span><em><span>The Pope’s Exorcist</span></em><span>.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><br/></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:300px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1682122047774.png" style="width:300px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"><span contenteditable="true" id="isPasted">Photo credit to Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><br/></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>“It was just something I hadn’t done—a genre I’ve never really touched at all. Scary movies put me off my sleep,” the Academy Award-winning actor admitted with a laugh.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>He further confessed: “I’m incredibly superstitious. Moving in circles like this where you’re examining situations that the characters face… It’s not necessarily a comfortable place for me. Certainly, there were a lot of unusual things happening around us, but you keep your balance and see them as coincidence, otherwise you’re going to drive yourself a little bit insane.”</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><br/></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span></span><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/New Project (2).jpg" style="width:600px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">Photo credit Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/New Project (3).jpg" style="width:600px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"><span contenteditable="true" id="isPasted">Photo credit Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>In <em>The Pope’s Exorcist</em>, Russell plays the role of Father Gabriele Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican. While investigating a young boy who is possessed, Fr. Amorth uncovers a secret that the Vatican has kept hidden for centuries.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><br/></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>Watch the trailer: </span></div><div><iframe width="789" height="444" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Csfy9Qkvam8" title="THE POPE&#x27;S EXORCIST - Official Trailer" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">To prepare for his role, the actor went to Rome and spent a week meeting with people from the Vatican who knew the real life Fr. Amorth. Much to the actor’s surprise, the Catholic Church, which is known for being tight-lipped about its secrets, was very open about matters surrounding the well-known priest.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>“I have to say that the Church was very open. We were given some extreme privileges by those in charge at the Vatican,” Russell revealed.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/New Project (4).jpg" style="width:600px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"><span contenteditable="true" id="isPasted">Photo credit Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/New Project (5).jpg" style="width:600px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"><span contenteditable="true" id="isPasted">Photo credit Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">The actor also said that he learned that the real life Fr. Amorth was a very well-liked man who had the trust of the world’s oldest and most powerful organizations. The late exorcist</span><span> “never had any disagreements with anybody and always followed the line of the church.”</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>Fr. Amorth was also a bit of a rebel. “Father Amorth said some very controversial things in his time. He made some very strong statements, at various points in time, about his beliefs—which weren’t always 100% in line with the Church.”</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>“He had a certain, particular irreverent take on things that I tried to bring into the film. He’s an individual, not a cookie cutter man of the cloth. He rides a Lambretta motor scooter!” Russell revealed.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">The film’s director, </span><span>Julius Avery, reaffirmed that the actor nailed his portrayal of Fr. Amorth whom they learned was much loved and admired by those who knew him.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>Director Avery states, “He never went against his real character. It remained grounded and real. That’s why I feel his performance is so wonderful; because he was able to embody the spirit of Father Amorth.”</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> <span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:600px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/New Project (6).jpg" style="width:600px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">Photo credit Columbia Pictures</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">The movie is based on the files of Father Gabriele Amorth who, over the course of many decades, reportedly performed over 160,000 exorcisms before his death in 2016. Before he passed on, he wrote over thirty books which largely detailed his exploits as an exorcist, </span><span>including <em>An Exorcist Tells His Story</em> and <em>An Exorcist: More Stories</em> on which writers Michael Petroni, R. Dean McCreary, and Chester Hastings based the scr</span><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)">eenplay.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span style="color:rgb(49, 49, 49)"> </span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span>Aside from Russell Crowe, the cast also includes Daniel Zovatto, Alex Essoe, and Franco Nero. </span><span>The film also introduces 12-year-old Peter DeSouza-Feighoney who plays Henry, a boy who becomes possessed by demons.</span></div><div style="margin:0cm;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><span> </span></div><div><br/></div>

<p>Award-winning actor Russell Crowe moves out of his comfort zone to tackle a new genre.</p>

Award-winning actor Russell Crowe moves out of his comfort zone to tackle a new genre.