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John Lithgow played the role of Cardinal Joseph Tremblay, one of the leading candidates to take over as the pope in Edward Berger’sConclave. The film follows Ralph Fiennes’ Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who is in charge of electing the next pope and uncovers secrets and scandals in the process. Lithgow’s character wasn’t innocent and there was one hint in the film that the actor managed to cover up well.
Lithgow was sadly one of the biggest snubs at the Oscars despite the film’s eight nominations. He even spoke out against another Oscar snub in the film. The film’s director Edward Berger did not get nominated in the Best Director category, despite the film bagging Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay nods.
John Lithgow covered up one aspect of his character well and fans missed this hint inConclave
John Lithgow‘s Joseph Tremblay comes very close to achieving the position of pope. However, Ralph Fiennes’ Thomas Lawrence discovers documents that indicate Tremblay committed simony. After he reveals Tremblay’s actions, the character cannot leave because he is in the conclave and remains so while suffering humiliation.
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Lithgow discussed his negative shade character inConclaveduring a Q&A session during this awards season. According toThe Playlist, Lithgow revealed that the odds were stacked against him right from the beginning. He shared that Tremblay is the Cardinal Camerlengo in the film, which meant that he was in charge of the revenues and properties.
Lithgow shared that in a story likeConclave, the guy in charge of finance always turns out to be a bad guy. He shared:
The odds were stacked against him from the beginning. It doesn’t have to be explained in the film, but he is the Cardinal Camerlengo. He has an actual official position in the College of Cardinals, and that is he administers the revenues and properties of the Vatican. I mean that’s like a gigantic CFO position, enormously important. And in a film like this, you just know that that’s got to be the villain.
The genius idea that the film came up with was to not explain the word ‘Camerlengo’. Lithgow shared that he constantly tried to persuade people that he was innocent which would’ve been how Trembley behaved as a Camerlengo. He shared:
Probably a good idea that we didn’t explain the word Camerlengo because that would’ve given everything away. So, I was always trying to think, to constantly be persuading people that I’m innocent for the drama of the story, but also because that’s probably how Trembley was constantly behaving as Camerlengo.
Lithgow shared that Trembley had great proximity to the opportunity for corruption. The character knew how to do it and he had been in the position for a long time. Lithgow shared,“So, that to me was a fascinating aspect of his character, that he was vulnerable.”The actor believed that Trembley’s humiliation in front of his peers must’ve tormented him more than prison time.
John Lithgow was disappointed in Edward Berger’s Oscar snub
John Lithgow said in an interview thathe was disappointed at Edward Berger’s Oscar snubfor Best Director. Lithgow shared that Berger is a“rare and wonderful”director. He shared that the film’s eight nominations happened only because it had a great director. Lithgow shared that Berger can take it as a win from the Oscars. He shared withVariety:
Of course, I was disappointed, but that is just the element of awards season. The field is strong and Edward is a rare and wonderful director. We loved him so much. He was nominated for every single other award, and ‘Conclave’ got eight Oscar noms. That only happens when you have a great director. He can take it.
The nominees for the Best Director category are Coralie Fargeat (The Substance), Sean Baker (Anora), Brady Corbet (The Brutalist), James Mangold (A Complete Unknown), and Jacques Audiard (Emilia Pérez).
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Conclavehas beennominated for Best Picture, Best Actor forRalph Fiennes, Best Adapted Screenplay for Peter Straughan, Best Supporting Actress for Isabella Rossellini, Best Editing for Nick Emerson, Best Original Score for Volker Bertelmann, Best Production Design, and Best Costume Design.
Conclaveis now available for streaming on Peacock.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
