Viewers across the U.S. are getting ready for the next Pope to be announced by binge watching the fictional drama “Conclave.”
Why it matters: The Oscar-award-winning film that depicts how the Catholic Church chooses its leader has seen a massive spike in daily viewership since Pope Francis died earlier this week.
Driving the news: The film’s U.S. streaming viewership hit 18.3 million minutes watched on Tuesday, after the film became available for streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video, and 6.9 million minutes on Monday, according to Luminate, which tracks entertainment industry data.
- Compared to Monday and Tuesday of the prior week, the data showed a 3,200% spike in week-over-week viewership.
- Between Sunday and Monday, when news of Francis’ death broke, the “Best Picture” nominee‘s streaming viewership jumped 283% in the U.S. across all platforms.
- Average daily viewership for the film during the week of April 11 to 17, according to Luminate, was 1.7 million minutes watched — meaning that it received over 5 million more minutes watched the day of Francis’ death than the average day the week prior.
Zoom out: Conclave wasn’t the only papal film that piqued interest.
- U.S. viewership for Netflix’s “The Two Popes,” starring Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict and Jonathan Pryce as Pope Francis, spiked by 417%.
The big picture: Francis’ death will bring faith leaders from across the world to the Vatican on the horizon of a new era for the Catholic Church.
- Who is chosen to assume Church leadership in his absence could extend or depart from that legacy — inspiring international intrigue.
What’s next: Fans of the fictional adaptation will have to look no further than reality shortly, with a conclave starting in the coming weeks.
- The College of Cardinals gather some 15 to 20 days after a pope’s death or resignation to elect a new faith leader, beginning a highly secretive process — the same one that elevated Jorge Mario Bergoglio to a historic papacy over a decade ago.
Go deeper: Read: Pope’s wishes to be laid to rest in a “simple” tomb in Rome
