Two-time Academy Award nominee Jude Law smokes cigarettes, shows a little skin, and threatens war against his enemies in the teaser trailer for his upcoming Sky Atlantic miniseries. All of this sounds innocuous enough until you realize who Law is portraying — the fictional Pius XIII, worldwide leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
Born Lenny Belardo, the first American pontiff, as suggested in the trailer above, will experience the kind of anti-hero character arc that’s been so en vogue for the past 15 years (that is if he’s a hero at all). He’s reportedly a highly conservative pope with a soft spot for “the weak and the poor.” And he doesn’t seem to take too kindly to the Vatican giving him orders.
The limited series was directed Paolo Sorrentino, known best for his Academy Award-winning The Great Beauty. The Italian filmmaker says the 10-part miniseries explores religious themes related to power and temptation; it’s about “the clear signs of God’s existence. The clear signs of God’s absence. How faith can be searched for and lost.” Academy Award winner Diane Keaton costars as American nun Sister Mary.
The Young Pope will premiere on Sky Atlantic October 27, followed by availability on HBO and Canal+.
(Via Coming Soon)
