Pope Leo XIV is reportedly related to a roster of famous names, including Justin Bieber and Madonna, according to a new report by the New York Times.
The publication put together a deep dive into the Pope’s ancestry, in collaboration with genealogists at American Ancestors and the Cuban Genealogy Club of Miami.
One of the findings is that the pontiff is linked to both Bieber and Madonna through a common ancestor born around six generations ago – and it also links him to the likes of Angelina Jolie and Hillary Clinton.
“Through one Canadian ancestor, Louis Boucher de Grandpre, who was born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, the pope is related to numerous Canadian-derived distant cousins, including Pierre and Justin Trudeau, Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton, Justin Bieber, Jack Kerouac and Madonna,” the report reads.
Billboard notes the irony of the ancestral link to Madonna, given how the singer has been criticised by the Vatican multiple times. In 2022, she tweeted Pope Francis asking to “meet up one day to discuss some important matters,” adding, “I’ve been ex communicated 3 times. It doesn’t seem fair.”
In 2015, she dedicated a song to Pope Francis, claiming that he was “stalking” her. Telling the audience how both she and Pope Francis were in New York recently, Madonna said, “The pope is stalking me. Either he’s a copycat or he’s secretly in love with me”.
She continued, “I like the new pope. He seems very open-minded. I’ve been excommunicated from the Catholic Church three times. It shows the Vatican cares deeply.
“Since Popey-wopey is on his way over here, I want to dedicate this song to him because it’s a love song and I, for one, do think that love makes the world go around.”
Madonna also compared herself to Pope Francis, saying, “I don’t think there’s that much difference between me and the Pope. We both wear dresses.”
In other Justin Bieber-related news, in April, he paid tribute to his grandfather Bruce Dale, who passed away at the age of 80.
Posting a photo of himself as a kid with Dale, Bieber wrote on Instagram : “Papa , I always took all ur money lol. I remember u specifically telling me, gramma gave u an allowance of 20 dollars for the WEEK! I would always convince you to spend on snacks at the hockey game on Friday nights.”
“Reluctantly you always gave it to me. Corn nuts, skittles, gum balls, chuck a puck, slush puppies.”
It has also been reported that Bieber is back in the studio and planning a major comeback. These were heightened when he was seen in the studio at the start of the new year, and again when Mk.gee revealed that he had been working with the singer on new material.
If the studio output comes together as a full album, it will be his first studio release since 2021’s ‘Justice’.
Meanwhile, in other Madonna-related news, earlier this month she announced the release of her long-rumoured ‘Veronica Electronica’ album. The record is due to be released on July 25.
Last month it was reported that Madonna may be working on a show based on her life for Netflix, and teaming up with Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy for the limited series.