How And When To Watch Pope Francis' Funeral – Why 'Conclave' Might Become A Streaming Hit

The death of Pope Francis at the age of 88 has brought attention to the Catholic Church and the selection of selecting a new pope.

Here's how prediction markets and a 2024 movie could profit from the pope's death.

Pope's Funeral Set: A funeral for Pope Francis, the global leader of the Catholic Church since 2013, will be held on Saturday, April 26, at 10 a.m. CET (4 a.m. ET). Many world leaders are likely to attend the event.

Variety reports that the funeral will be held outdoors in front of St. Peter's Basilica. It is expected to draw a large audience of world leaders. In the days ahead, Catholics will also pay tribute to the pope before he is laid to rest.

Among the media companies expected to cover the funeral are Warner Bros Discovery WBD unit CNN, Paramount Global PARAPARAA owned channel CBS and NBC, which is owned by Comcast Corporation CMCSA.

According to the report, the media companies have rented terrace space overlooking St. Peter's Square for the funeral.

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are expected to attend.

The Vatican released images of Pope Francis since his death on Tuesday, showing the former leader in his wooden casket. The casket will be taken to St. Peter's Basilica on Wednesday, where people can begin paying their respects for three days.

The last pope funeral was that of Pope Benedict XVI in 2022. Benedict had already stepped down from his role of pope in 2013. Hundreds of thousands of mourners paid tribute to Benedict in person ahead of his funeral.

In 2005, millions of mourners traveled to Rome to pay respects to Pope John Paul II, who was pope at the time of his death.

The funeral comes as the Catholic Church celebrates Holy Year. The event occurs every 25 years, and millions of Catholics travel to Vatican City as part of a pilgrimage.

Read Also: Months After Viral ‘Drip’ Pic, Pope Francis Sounds Alarm On AI’s ‘Disruptive Possibilities And Ambivalent Effects’

Conclave to Follow: After the Pope's funeral, the selection process to pick the next leader known as conclave will take place two to three weeks later. The process will see 135 cardinals from different countries gather to select the next pope in the secretive process.

Following details of the pope's funeral, the conclave will likely begin between May 5 and May 10.

The selection process of a new pope could benefit prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi.

Polymarket listed odds for the next pope yesterday. It offers several betting markets, including the names, the continent from which the next pope comes, the date he will be selected, and more.

Here are the current betting odds for the next pope, with the odds from yesterday in parentheses.

• Pietro Parolin: 31% (36%)
• Luis Antonio Tagle: 23% (26%)
• Matteo Zuppi: 11% (5%)
• Peter Turkson: 9% (7%)
• Peter Erdo: 9% (8%)

On Kalshi, the markets look similar with Parolin the favorite at 33% followed by Tagle at 22%. Polymarket’s ranking differs in that it has Erdo fifth, while Kalshi has Pierbattista Pizzaballa fifth.

Streaming platform Prime Video from Amazon.com Inc. AMZN could also benefit from the pope selection process. As of Tuesday, the platform is the home of "Conclave," a 2024 film from Focus Features.

After spending months on the Peacock streaming platform, which like Focus Features is owned by Comcast, the film is now streaming on Prime Video. It’s an opportunistic time for Prime Video, considering “Conclave” received eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.

While "Conclave" didn't take home the top honors at the ceremony, it will likely garner increased interest in the coming weeks.

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