On the occasion of the release of “The Exorcist of the Vatican”, here are five things to know about this horror film with Russell Crowe.
What is it about ? Inspired by the real archives of Father Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist of the Vatican. Father Gabriele Amorth investigates the terrifying discovery of a possessed young boy. His investigations will lead him to unveil an age-old conspiracy that the Vatican has desperately tried to keep in oblivion.
Father Gabriele Amorth
The film, written by Michael Petroni and Evan Spiliotopoulos, is based on facts presented as real. More precisely, The Exorcist of the Vatican is inspired by the real archives of Father Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist of the Vatican.
Dubbed by some as the Dean of Exorcists, by others as the Exorcist of the Vatican, Father Gabriele Amorth performed countless exorcisms on behalf of the Church and proved himself a fierce fighter against the forces of evil.
He recounted his exploits in two books (An exorcist tells And New Tales of an Exorcist) documenting terrifying anecdotes and exploring the threats that demons pose to humanity. His interpreter Russell Crowe explains:
“Father Gabriele Amorth did exist, he held this position for 36 years and he participated in tens of thousands of exorcisms. Without a doubt, he is a deeply pious man, but also someone ‘extremely independent.’
2023 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Daniel Zovatto and Russell Crowe
Russell Crowe doesn’t like horror!
With The Exorcist of the Vatican, Russell Crowe holds for the first time the main role of a horror film. The 59-year-old actor says: “It’s a genre I’ve never explored. To be honest, I don’t really like horror movies. They keep me up at night. I’m incredibly superstitious.”
“Walking in circles as the character does to deal with the situations he has to face… Doesn’t really make me feel comfortable. Certainly, there have been unusual phenomena around us, but we take a little step back and consider it coincidence – otherwise you end up going crazy.”
The James Bond of exorcists!
The two works of Father Amorth – An exorcist tells And New Tales of an Exorcist – were bestsellers. Producer Michael Patrick Kaczmarek managed to acquire the rights to adapt it before the clergyman died in 2016: “During our discussions, I was able to convince him that if he took the risk of working with me, I would make sure to preserve the Catholic values of his work – and to respect his integrity, the Church and his order. religious.”
“These books are a mine that contains hundreds of intrigues, anecdotes, real affairs during which Father Amorth exorcised demons. The number of stories we could tell was limitless. With my partner producers , we always thought that this character was the James Bond of the exorcists. There was a vast body of stories, from both books, that we could draw from and that were in line with our vision of the film.
2023 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Russell Crowe
The possessed boy
In the film, Father Gabriele Amorth is on a mission to hunt down the demonic creature that has taken over a little boy named Henry. For the role, the production hired 12-year-old Peter DeSouza-Feighoney. Producer Doug Belgrad recalls:
“During the audition, he mimicked the pope’s voice, mixing German and Italian dialects, before uttering the ominous growls of a demon. Peter was not expected to have developed a demonic voice. He exceeded our expectations all the way.”
Note, moreover, the presence of Daniel Zovatto in the second main role of the film, an actor extremely accustomed to horror since he played in Beneath, It Follows, Don’t Breathe or even Penny Dreadful: City Of Angels .
The construction of an abbey in Ireland
For the exteriors of the Abbey of San Sebastian, the filmmaker Julius Avery defined some criteria: the building had to be located on heights and be accessible by a modern road for the scene where Julia and her children arrive by car (and, more later, the one where Father Amorth disembarks on his Lambretta scooter).
After research in Ireland, the production opted for an abandoned castle in Limerick. Location manager Eoin Holohan explains: “It was a structure of Gothic architecture nestled deep in the woods. There was a building on high ground, a clear horizon in the distance, and a road nearby.”
Julius Avery and his team filmed the interiors of the Abbey at Ardmore Studios near Dublin. The chief designer Alan Gilmore designed their plans by drawing inspiration from the stained glass windows of Christ Church Cathedral (in Dublin), and by integrating demonic references like the pentagrams adjoining the iconography.