Pope Francis Biopic "Francisco" Gets Hollywood Treatment

Argentina, the homeland of Pope Francis, is reportedly working on a biopic of the highly influential Pontiff.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Argentine-Spanish biopic is based on the biography titled Pope Francis: Life and Revolution: A Biography of Jorge Bergoglio by Vatican correspondent Elisabetta Pique. It was confirmed that producer Pablo Bossi has recruited Beda Docampo Feijoo, who wrote the script, to also direct the film.  In terms of casting, Dario Grandinetti will play Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires who anointed Pope Francis in March of last year. Grandinetti will be joined by Silvia Abascal, Jorge Marrale, Carlos Hipolito, Leonor Manso, Laura Novoa, and Leticia Bredice in the cast.

Francisco will be made under the banner of FilmSharks Intl. and will follow Cardinal Bergoglio's life and work before becoming head of the Church. It will involve Abascal, a Spanish journalist who met Bergoglio in the Conclave of 2005.

The press statement of Francisco said: "The relationship between the journalist and Father Jorge is tinged with the warmth, good humor and wisdom with which the future pope will astonish the faithful," the Variety reported.

The film's plot will include Father Jorge's struggle with Argentina's military dictatorship as well as his work in the slums and battle against prostitution, slave labor, drug trafficking and corruption.

 "We hope that this film transmits the admiration which we all feel for the coherence of a life based in austerity and charity really inspires," director Docampo Feijoo said.

Francisco goes into production on January 12 in Buenos Aires and will later move to locations in Madrid and Rome. To be distributed by Buena Vista International in Latin America and Spain, the film's world premiere is set for July 2015.