Conclave Writer Responds To Recent Conservative Backlash To Ending: “I Stand By It”

Conclave writer Peter Straughan responded to criticisms over the film’s ending. The story of Conclave follows several cardinals who vote for a new pope following the death of the previous pope. At the end of Conclave, the recently elected Cardinal Benitez is revealed to be intersex, which has proven to be very controversial.

Screen Rant was present at the Golden Globes press conference after Straughan won the award for Best Screenplay for Conclave. During the press conference, Straughan defended Conclave’s ending and argued that the film is not anti-Catholic. Read his full quote below:

I don’t think the film is anti-Catholic. I was brought up Catholic. I was an altar boy. I think the core message of Conclave is about the church always having to re-find its spiritual core, because it deals so much with power. That’s always been a careful, difficult balance. To me, that was a very central Catholic ideal that I was brought up with. I stand by it.

More to come…