Conclave screenwriter defends movie following 'anti-Catholic' criticism

Conclave screenwriter Peter Straughan has defended the movie after talk show host Megyn Kelly branded it "anti-Catholic".

The media personality hit headlines over the weekend when she took to X and called the acclaimed film "the most disgusting anti-Catholic film I have seen in a long time" and cast "shame" on its stars Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci and John Lithgow.

After winning the Best Screenplay award at the Golden Globes on Sunday, Straughan addressed the criticism in an interview backstage with Variety.

Noting he hadn't heard the comments directly, Straughan said, "I don't think the film is anti-Catholic. I was brought up Catholic. I was an altar boy."

He continued, "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."

Conclave, which is based on the book of the same name by Robert Harris, follows many cardinals - led by Fiennes's character Cardinal Lawrence - as they convene in Vatican City to elect a new pope.

In her X post, Kelly blasted the film's twist ending and the fact that almost every cardinal is "morally bankrupt/repulsive".

"I'm disgusted. What a thing to release to streaming just in time for Christmas. They would never do this to Muslims, but Christians/Catholics are always fair game to mock/belittle/smear," she concluded.

Conclave was nominated for six Golden Globes but only took home the Best Screenplay prize during the ceremony on Sunday.