Stanley Tucci says church would improve if priests were allowed to marry: ‘It would change everything’

Actor plays a priest during an election for the pope in the forthcoming film ‘Conclave’

Stanley Tucci believes he has the answer to all of the Catholic Church’s problems.

The 64-year-old is starring as Aldo Cardinal Bellini, in Edward Berger’s forthcoming film Conclave, about an election for the papacy. Starring Ralph Fiennes, the film drew crowds when it premiered and is already being tipped for the Oscars.

Although he admitted that “Catholicism is a myth I have great difficulty believing,” he did have some suggestions for the institution’s improvement.

“Priests should be able to get married,” he told The Guardian. “That changes everything. And nuns. Why can’t you be devoted to God and love someone at the same time? I don’t understand that.”

He continued, “Priests used to be married many years ago but the Catholic church stopped that.”

Tucci added that the prohibition of marriage had less to do with saintly aspirations and more to do with the avoidance of inheritance for women.

“The excuse was that priests needed to devote themselves to God,” he said. “But really it was because when they died, everything went to their wives. It wasn’t about devotion but money.

“And I think that’s a problem. Priests being able to be married would ground them in reality and only enhance their spirituality. Let’s just start with that.”

Tucci stars as a priest in Edward Berger’s forthcoming film ‘Conclave’ (Focus Features)

Reflecting on priesthood, Tucci said, “These people are trying to emulate God and yet they created God. So that’s weird. But without question, people in the public eye are always under more scrutiny. You’re larger than life.”

Based on the novel of the same name by Robert Harris, the actor admitted that the film follows certain stereotypes.

“The film does follow a certain trope, in a way, as the book did. But it’s a fascinating one – and not an easy one,” he said.

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Ralph Fiennes stars alongside Tucci (Focus Features)

“So often movies are made just to make us feel better. That’s why there are so many happy endings in movies, because there are so many unhappy endings in life.”

The conclave is the centuries-old tradition in which, on the death of a pope, cardinals gather in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican to participate in rounds of voting until they elect a new pontiff.

Conclave comes from the Latin “cum clave,” meaning “with a key,” to indicate the Cardinals are locked in until they have chosen the new leader for the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics.