The film opened in Polish cinemas on 28 September 2018 distributed by Kino Świat and racked up 935,357 admissions making it the best opening weekend in Polish cinemas in 2018, and surpassing the biggest hits of the recent years including 50 Shades of Grey (834,479 in 2015), Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015, 789,568), Letters to Santa 3 (TVN) (775,817 in 2016) and Pitbull. Dangerous Women (767,519 in 2016, Ent One).
The premiere of the film was surrounded by controversy and strong push back from the Polish representatives of the Catholic Church, with at least two cities not allowing the release of the film.
Clergy, written by Smarzowski and Wojciech Rzehak, follows the stories of three Catholic priests, who share a past tragic event and meet again to discover how their careers in the clergy have developed. The star cast of the box office hit includes Arkadiusz Jakubik, Robert Więckiewicz, Jacek Braciak and Janusz Gajos.
The film was shot in August and September of 2017 on location in Cracow and Nowa Huta. The film was produced by Profil Film Jacek Rzehak in coproduction with Showmax B.V., Moderator Inwestycje, Atlas Sztuki, Tovares, Studio Metrage, Kino Świat, Cracow Festival Office, the National Audiovisual Institute, Great Private Equity and production financing from the Polish Film Institute.
