Key Points
Pope Leo XIV’s brother revealed that he watched Conclave hours before the papal election.
He also noted that the religious leader played Wordle and Words With Friends before the vote.
The pope’s brother said he watched the Ralph Fiennes drama “so he knew how to behave.”
The new pope felt the divine spirit of Ralph Fiennes and Isabella Rossellini’s Oscar-nominated Conclave acting hours before cardinals elected him, says Pope Leo XIV’s brother.
After the Roman Catholic leader ascended to peak papal position earlier this week, his sibling, Illinois resident John Prevost, revealed what the pope did immediately before Thursday’s election following his predecessor Pope Francis’ death in April.
Prevost told NBC News that he spoke with his brother just before the election and that they played mobile games like Wordle and Words With Friends to “keep his mind off of life in the real world.”
“Then we talked about what’s going on,” Prevost added, before suggesting that one of his points of discussion may have rubbed his sibling the wrong way for an undisclosed reason. “I said, ‘Well, do you have your red socks?’ Doesn’t go over well all the time.”
Prevost recalled inquiring about his brother’s familiarity with the 2024 film Conclave, which starred Fiennes as Cardinal Lawrence, a religious figure who navigates a growing entanglement of conspiracies and inter-religion fighting as he and his fellow cardinals are sequestered to elect a new pope.
“I said, ‘Are you ready for this? Did you watch the movie Conclave so you know how to behave?’ He had just finished watching the movie Conclave, so he knew how to behave,” explained Prevost. “So it’s that kind of stuff, because I wanted to take his mind off of it. You know, laugh about something, because this is now an awesome responsibility.”
Focus Features / Courtesy Everett Collection
Ralph Fiennes in ‘Conclave’
In addition to raking in a healthy $119 million at the global box office on a reported $20 million budget, Conclave earned glowing critical praise — particularly for its twist ending.
The film also went on to score eight Oscar nominations at the 2025 Academy Awards, where it ultimately won one for Peter Straughan’s screenplay, adapted from Robert Harris’ novel of the same name.
On the awards circuit, the stars of Conclave paid tribute to Pope Francis amid reports of his ailing health due to a respiratory emergency that led to double pneumonia.
Rossellini, who played a nun in the movie, joined fellow stars Fiennes, John Lithgow, and Sergio Castellitto on stage at the 2025 SAG Awards in February, where she led a tribute to Pope Francis during the telecast.
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“First of all, we would like to wish Pope Francis a quick recovery,” Rossellini said as the audience in the room applauded.
Watch Prevost discuss Pope Leo XIV watching Conclave in the video above.
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