Advances on "The New Pope," sequel to "The Young Pope": it will feature Malkovich, Marilyn Manson and Sharon Stone

The New Pope, the television series that will be the continuation (or, if you will, the second season) of The Young Pope, the successful 2016 series directed by Paolo Sorrentino and telling the story of Italian-American cardinal Lenny Belardo (played by Jude Law), who unexpectedly ascended to the papal throne under the name of Pope Pius XIII (who in fiction is the first U.S. pope in history), is about to arrive: the episodes chronicle the transformation of the young prelate, who at the beginning of the series is quiet and has little influence on the political checkerboard of the Vatican, and once elected pope becomes an energetic, assertive, reactionary pontiff, capable of manipulating and subjugating people, almost despotic in some respects, and utterly untamable (when in fact the conclave hoped to maneuver him given his initially mild character).

Some of the main characters from the first series have been confirmed for The New Pope: Jude Law will still be Pope Pius XIII, and there will again be Silvio Orlando (as Cardinal Angelo Voiello, Secretary of State of the Holy See), Javier Cámara (who plays Cardinal Bernardo Gutiérrez), Cécile de France (as Sophie Dubois, the Vatican’s marketing manager), Luidivine Sagnier (a woman deeply devoted to the pope and the wife of a Swiss guard). Then there are some new names, including two stars-John Malkovich and Sharon Stone. In addition, rumors are also leaking out about the participation of Marilyn Manson. Malkovich will have a leading role, while Manson and Stone will appear as guest stars. Among the Italian actors, a role will also go to Massimo Ghini.

As for the plot, early rumors let it be known that The New Pope will begin where The Young Pope left off: specifically, after his first public appearance in Venice, Pius XIII falls ill, goes into a coma, and the Holy See’s Secretary of State orders a new conclave to have another pontiff elected. The choice will fall on the English cardinal to be played by Malkovich (and who will ascend to the throne of Peter as John Paul III), but Jude Law, as Pius XIII, will be still the protagonist, and at some point in the story he will wake up, as Paolo Sorrentino has already anticipated (“it seemed expensive to us,” he joked to ANSA, “to pay a star like Jude Law to sleep, and in fact at some point he will wake up”). Regarding his participation, Malkovich told ANSA, “I was a big fan of the first series, I’m not a Catholic or an expert on things papal, but I’m fascinated by philosophy, theology, the affairs of the Vatican.”

We then know that a clash will arise between the two popes, since they will have opposite characters: reactionary, intransigent, dogmatic and almost fundamentalist Pius XIII, current, modern and opposed to extremism John Paul III. As for other details, Sorrentino also told ANSA that “the Vatican knows how to guard its secrets very well.” We do know, however, that in the second season of the series, the director has been working very imaginatively.

Episodes of the new series (nine in all) will arrive this fall on Sky Atlantic but will premiere at the 76th Venice Film Festival: in particular, the first and seventh episodes will be screened. The New Pope is produced by Lorenzo Mieli and Mario Gianani for Wildside and co-produced by Haut et Court TV and Mediapro and distributed by Fremantle.

Advances on "The New Pope," sequel to "The Young Pope": it will feature Malkovich, Marilyn Manson and Sharon Stone

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