Horror movies are intended to leave people spooked and it\u2019s not uncommon for paranormal situations to unfold on set during filming.<\/p>\n
From the mysterious claw marks The Conjuring star Vera Farmiga found on her computer screen to the fire on the set of The Exorcist that caused the MacNeil family house to burn down \u2013 except Regan\u2019s room \u2013 it almost sounds scarier than the films themselves.<\/p>\n
Now, Russell Crowe has seemingly had his own strange experience while filming his very first horror movie. The Oscar winner stars as the late Italian Catholic priest and exorcist Gabriele Amorth in the terrifying new film, The Pope\u2019s Exorcist.<\/p>\n
In this cross between The Exorcist and The Da Vinci Code, Amorth \u2013 who was described by producer Michael Patrick Kaczmarek as the \u2018James Bond of exorcists\u2019 \u2013 investigates a young boy\u2019s terrifying possession and ends up uncovering a conspiracy the Vatican has tried to keep hidden for centuries.<\/p>\n
During a chat with UNILAD about the new film, Crowe revealed he found something extremely strange outside his house over the course of filming.<\/p>\n
Russell Crowe plays Gabriele Amorth in The Pope\u2019s Exorcist. Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we were all aware of keeping ourselves sane throughout the course of the shoot,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were certainly little strange coincidental things happening but you\u2019ve got to keep your balance with that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI arrived home once and there was a dead bird in the centre of the doorway of the house I was staying in and birds are quite symbolic within the movie.\u201dThe 59-year-old film star concluded with a laugh: \u201cBut I rationalised that a different way in my head \u2013 that there must be some creature in the woods around where I was living that had realised I had gone away for a few days and was leaving me a welcome home gift\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
We can only hope!<\/p>\n
The Gladiator star says he is very \u2018superstitious\u2019 and he doesn\u2019t like horror films. \u201cI\u2019m not a horror fan at all,\u201d he confesses. \u201cI don\u2019t like scary movies. I like movies like The Princess Bride and things like that. So, I\u2019m not a horror fan.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, why has Crowe decided to star in The Pope\u2019s Exorcist, you ask? It\u2019s all because of Amorth\u2019s incredible real life story. Born in the town of Modena, in the north of Italy, in 1925 \u2013 the same place known for being the hub of Ferrari \u2013 he had a religious calling at an early age. But when he was 17, he was told by a senior priest he was too young to become a priest and was sent away.<\/p>\n
During World War II, Amorth was recruited into the Italian Army, but soon switched sides and became a partisan in the fight against the fascists and Nazis. At the end of the war he went to law school, but his calling never left him. In 1951, Amorth was ordained to the priesthood and in 1986, Rome assigned him to assist Father Candido Amantini, then the Vatican\u2019s chief exorcist.<\/p>\n
Crowe found something strange outside his house during filming. Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing<\/p>\n
In 1990, Amorth established the International Association of Exorcists and two years later, when Father Amantini died, Amorth moved from apprentice to chief exorcist.\u201cWhat drew me to this though is the life story of this man,\u201d Crowe tells UNILAD. \u201cHe had a very interesting life and I was hoping if we could get at least some of that on screen it would be a good piece of entertainment for people.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Pope\u2019s Exorcist is in UK cinemas Friday, 7 April.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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