Is 'The Pope's Exorcist' based on a true story? Inside the spine-chilling life of Father Gabriele Amorth
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Russell Crowe is one of the finest actors of this generation and has given several superlative performances over the years. His scintillating performances in ‘A Beautiful Mind’ and ‘Gladiator’ are still considered to be two of the greatest acting performances of all time. But it seems, the iconic Australian actor is set to take a new direction in his career with the upcoming horror movie ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’. It will be the first time that Crowe will be seen playing the lead role in a proper horror movie that will be exploring the unexplored streets of the Vatican City.
Directed by Julius Avery, the movie follows the journey of Father Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist for the Vatican, who battles Satan and other demons. He is one of the most prolific names in the community and only the Pope has the right to summon him or ask questions. Only the hardest of cases are given to Father Amorth and if he has been called for something, it means something really diabolical has taken place.
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As soon as people heard the name Father Gabriele Amorth, they started to believe that the movie is based on a real-life story. Is ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ really based on a true story? Let’s take a look.
Is ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ based on a true story?
Yes, and the real-life story behind the upcoming movie will send chills down your spine. Born on May 1, 1925, in Italy, Amorth was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1954 and was appointed an exorcist of the Diocese of Rome in June 1986. In 1990, he founded the International Association of Exorcists, of which he was president until his retirement at the age of 75.
When he actively doing his work, Amorth claimed that he performed at least 160,000 exorcisms during the course of his career. On the other hand, he also claimed that people like Hitler and Stalin were also possessed by the devil. In 2006, while talking to the Vatican Radio, Father Amorth believed Hitler and Stalin were certainly “possessed” by the devil and warned people that the devil can possess entire groups and populations.
“I'am convinced that the Nazis were possessed by the devil. If one thinks of what was committed by people like Stalin or Hitler, certainly they were possessed by the devil. This is seen in their actions, in their behavior and in the horrors they committed,” Father Amorth said.
Father Amorth found himself in another controversy when he claimed that Yoga was actually the Devil’s Work. On the other hand, he told children not to read ‘Harry Potter’ books as well. He said, “In ‘Harry Potter’, the Devil acts in a crafty and covert manner, under the guise of extraordinary powers, magic spells and curses.”
The Italian priest died on September 16, 2016. He was 91. Father Amorth left a legacy behind and there are a lot of things that we will never get to know because of so much secrecy around the people who have worked in the Vatican City. ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ might give us a perspective about how Father Amorth used to operate and what kind of secrets he unravelled during several exorcisms.
Who plays Father Gabriele Amorth in the movie?
Academy Award winning actor Russell Crowe will be seen playing the role of Father Gabriele Amorth in ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’. In a recent interview, Crowe opened up about a strange thing that he experienced while shooting the horror film. While talking to UNILAD, the 59-year-old superstar noted that he saw a “dead bird” in the centre of the doorway of the house he was residing in.
He added, “I arrived home once and there was a dead bird in the centre of the doorway of the house I was staying in and birds are quite symbolic within the movie. But I rationalised that a different way in my head - that there must be some creature in the woods around where I was living that had realised I had gone away for a few days and was leaving me a welcome home gift.”
‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ is scheduled to hit theatres on April 7, 2023.