LONDON – His latest drama is set in the Vatican, but director Edward Berger says “Conclave” is about people striving for power and it could happen anywhere.

The thriller stars Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci as two cardinals who team up with other priests to decide who will be elected as the next Pope.

“It could be in Washington, D.C…. in Downing Street… a vacancy… and whenever that power vacuum exists, people will strive for it… and stab each other in the back “They are trying to manipulate their way into power,” Ghonenge and Berger said in an interview with Reuters.

This is Fiennes’ character Cardinal Lawrence, who as Dean of the College of Cardinals has to oversee the proceedings at the conclave and handle the scandals that arise.

The two-time Oscar-nominated actor, who grew up as a Catholic but says he is not committed to any one religion, said the film also raises questions about the relevance of the church and those who lead it .

“Who is qualified for this strange but very powerful, unique position of being the leader of the Catholic Church? Who is the one who has the right qualities?” Fiennes said.

The handful of favorites who emerge are a mixed group with their own secrets and ideas, ranging from traditional-minded Cardinals to Tucci’s progressive Cardinal Bellini.

Tucci said, “It was fascinating to play a man who is so dedicated to his faith but still understands the complexity of human behavior. And the power of the church and … how much that power can be if it’s in the wrong hands.” Is powerful.”

Berger, whose 2022 World War II film “All Quiet on the Western Front” won four Oscars, based on the novel by British author Robert Harris, said his aim was to “bring the Pope down to earth.”

“They have cell phones, they vape, they smoke. The Pope ends up in a plastic body bag in the back of the ambulance,” he said.

“We’re all the same… I wanted to take that spirituality… and make it completely mundane.”

“Conclave” opens in the UK on Friday.

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