'Spotlight' Scene Reveals Key Strategy in Exposing Catholic Church Wrongdoing

Spotlight, the indie drama that was a hit with critics during its festival circuit tour earlier this year, explores the Boston Globe’s real-life investigation into the Catholic church’s sex-abuse scandal in the early 2000s. The paper’s investigative team, played by the likes of Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Brian d'Arcy James, and Rachel McAdams, uncovered many instances of child abuse by local priests in Boston over the years. But, as this exclusive clip above reveals, their editor (played by Liev Schreiber) wants them to aim higher. When the team lobbies for running their story immediately, he reminds them that they’ll have a better chance to effect actual change if they take down the system that had long protected the pedophile priests. That means going after an even more formidable foe: Cardinal Bernard Law, the powerful head of the Boston Archdiocese.

Written and directed by Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent, Michael Clayton), Spotlight hits select theaters on Friday.