The Pope's Exorcist Is Based on the True Story of Father Gabriele Amorth, the Dean of Exorcists

The intersection between horror and religion always makes for enticing storytelling, which is why The Pope’s Exorcist is at the top of our to-watch list in April. In this devoutly Catholic country, Filipinos are no strangers to demons—fictional and otherwise—and exorcisms have always been a point of interest in urban legends and folklore. But in the scope of all things demonic, there’s no exorcist that’s more famous—or infamous—as Father Gabriele Amorth, also known as the Vatican’s Exorcist and the Dean of Exorcists.

His story has been the subject of Hollywood interest for decades, but it wasn’t until The Pope’s Exorcist came along that he finally allowed his story to be told. It was producer Patrick Kaczmarek who convinced the late Gabriele Amorth to let him adapt his best-selling memoirs into a film, and it all boiled down to his faith.

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“I believe I was able to succeed where other producers failed in that I was able to convince Father Amorth about my sincere religious devotion,” explained Kaczmarek. “In our exchanges, I was able to convince him that if he took the chance to work with me, that I would try to make sure the Catholicity would be preserved in the film—and that he would be respected as a person along with the Church and his religious order.”

Considered the “James Bond of exorcists,” Amorth collated his life’s work in his memoirs like An Exorcist Tells His Story and An Exorcist: More Stories, some of which reference official Roman Catholic teachings on demonology. Skeptic or not, you can’t deny that demonology is pretty freaking cool. Esotericism aside, the fascination with Amorth is also partially because of his unyielding belief in the (seemingly) impossible.

“Gabriele Amorth had a purity of faith that gave him a level of courage and bravery to do the job,” said Russell Crowe, the Oscar-winning actor laying Amorth in The Pope’s Exorcist. “It’s a very dark pursuit—you’re dealing a lot with people who are suffering deeply.”

The movie is based loosely on Amorth’s life, with a special loyalty to his characterization, but the plot itself is a fictional narrative fashioned to dissect the nature of evil and the motivations of the devil. The film follows Father Amorth and Father Esquibel (Daniel Zovatto) as they investigate a possession at a Spanish abbey, which becomes their gateway to explore the brutal history of the Catholic Church in Spain.

“Stories of good and evil are as old as time but the story of Father Amorth and his unique role in fighting evil is an important story to tell,” said executive producer Edward Siebert, S.J., who also happens to be a Jesuit priest and founder of Loyola Productions.

Catch The Pope’s Exorcist in cinemas starting April 19. The Pope’s Exorcist is distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.