From the Academy Award-nominated screenwriter of The Theory of Everything and Darkest Hour comes the fascinating and revealing tale of an unprecedented transfer of power and of two very different men – who both happen to live in the Vatican.

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce.

In February 2013, the arch-conservative Pope Benedict XVI made a startling announcement: He would resign, making him the first pope to willingly vacate his office in more than 700 years. Reeling from the news, the College of Cardinals rushed to Rome to congregate in the Sistine Chapel to pick his successor. Their unlikely choice? Francis, the first non-European pope in 1,200 years, a one-time tango-club bouncer, a passionate soccer fan, a man with the common touch.  

Why did Benedict walk away at the height of power, knowing his successor might be someone whose views might undo his legacy? How did Francis – who used to ride the bus to work back in his native Buenos Aires – adjust to life as leader to a billion followers? If, as the Church teaches, the pope is infallible, how can two living popes who disagree on almost everything both be right? 

Having immersed himself in these men’s lives to write the screenplay for the upcoming motion picture The Pope, Anthony McCarten masterfully weaves their stories into one gripping narrative.