'Conclave' is Available to Watch for Free Following Pope Francis' Death
Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday, April 21, at the age of 88, and when a pope passes, it marks a new chapter for the Catholic Church. Now, cardinals from around the world are gathering in Rome to elect the next pope.
Francis was elected to be the 266th pope in March 2013. He served up until his death, which is a longstanding tradition for almost all popes.
The process by which a new pope is selected is known as papal conclave, a "meeting of the College of Cardinals whose responsibility it is to elect a new pope," Loyola Press states. They add that when the conclave is happening, the cardinals are not allowed to communicate with the outside world. They also take an oath to keep the proceedings secret. "After each vote during the conclave, smoke from the Vatican signals whether someone has been elected—black smoke means no one was elected, white smoke means we have a new pope," Loyola Press adds.
In 2016, author Robert Harris released a book called Concave, and that book was made into a movie in 2024. Harris told Time in an October 2024 interview that his inspiration for writing the book stemmed from the 2005 papal conclave, which elected Pope Benedict XVI, who served before Pope Francis. The film has a 93% Tomatometer and 86% Popcornmeter from Rotten Tomatoes at present.
Now, Amazon Prime has announced that as of April 22, all Amazon Prime subscribers can watch Conclave at no additional cost, according to the New York Post, and those who aren't Prime members can sign up for a 30-day free trial to watch Conclave and the rest of the Prime Video offerings for free. Amazon Prime runs $14.99/month. Also, those who don't want to try out Amazon Prime are able to rent Concave on Prime Video for $5.99.
Conclave is not currently streaming on Peacock.
Related: Pope Francis Approves a First for the Catholic Church