Heretic's Monopoly Monologue Is The Hugh Grant Horror Movie's Best Piece Of Subtle Commentary

WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Heretic.

The notable Monopoly monologue in the A24 psychological horror thriller Heretic offers the best piece of subtle commentary in the film’s overarching message. Since releasing in theaters on November 8, 2024, Heretic has opened to strong reviews, resulting in a Rotten Tomatoes score of 90% and an audience score of 76%. Heretic stars Hugh Grant as Mr. Reed, an odd yet intelligent man who entraps two religious women, Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), in a game of deep theological contemplation. It’s one of several outstanding A24 movies released in 2024.

Heretic earned roughly $44.5 million during its theatrical run against a production budget of $10 million and is currently available to rent or purchase through digital platforms. Although it has yet to be released on streaming services, it’s likely to be released on HBO/MAX at some point in the future based on their exclusive deal with A24. The psychological horror is deeply engrossed in religious and moral contemplations, all orchestrated in a cat-and-mouse game of decisions and outcomes in the name of an apparently absent God. Mr. Reed chooses to play God with Sisters Barnes and Paxton, who are tested in remarkable ways throughout the film.

Heretic is available to rent or purchase through various streaming platforms.

Heretic’s Monopoly Monologue, Explained

It’s one of the most compelling examples of Mr. Reed’s philosophy

Mr. Reed’s Monopoly monologue in Heretic is one of the most compelling and strongest conceptual examples of his religious ideology in the entire film. Like a demented sort of professor, Mr. Reed brings out various versions of the Monopoly board game to make a point about how, although they appear to be different, they are fundamentally the same. He makes the argument that the major religions of the world can also be interpreted in this way through this example. For example, he likens the original Monopoly game to Judaism and other later versions to Christianity and Islam.

Mr. Reed’s central point in his Monopoly monologue rests on the idea that all religions, regardless of how they are represented and even marketed in a capitalistic sense, are merely just masks for systems of control.

Mr. Reed’s lecture on the Monopoly analogy sparks a lively discussion between him and the two missionary Sisters that viewers nearly forget the tension of the actual entrapment situation in play. Mr. Reed’s central point in his Monopoly monologue rests on the idea that all religions, regardless of how they are represented and even marketed in a capitalistic sense, are merely just masks for systems of control. Through the variations of apparent faith, the different versions of the “game” are seen as a choice between several distinct options. Mr. Reed argues that there really is no choice since there is no true difference between them, as they are all sourced by the same purpose of control.

Heretic’s Monopoly Argument Has A Giant Problem In It

Mr. Reed makes his point within the system he criticizes

Hugh Grant in Heretic (2024) facing the camera, two girls stand in front of him with their backs to us.

Despite Mr. Reed’s often convincing discourse using his extended Monopoly analogy to explain the world’s major religions, there is one major flaw in his summation of these ideas. Reed’s argument that systems of control are the only true religion, using Monopoly and its off-shoots as visual markers of that, doesn’t address the fact the man bought multiple copies of the board game to make a point. This essentially proves that he is being controlled by the same capitalistic system he bemoans, which somewhat undermines his grand thesis on the world’s religions and systems of control.

Hugh Grant's Mr Reed works on a miniature in his study from Heretic

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This is not only hypocritical on Mr. Reed’s part but also a greater testament to the realization that it’s truly impossible to see outside of a system of control when you’re inside of it, or grasp for a smaller sense of control within a larger structure. Mr. Reed tries to control his theological dilemma by entrapping the two Sisters in order to make a point about the larger world that he is ironically cutting his “subjects” off from. Although Mr. Reed’s Monolopy monologue is twistedly colorful and easy to understand, the flaw in his design is arguably the fact that it’s an entirely theoretical point. He is also confined within the control system he identifies and tries to replicate in his homemade microcosm.

Heretic’s Monopoly Scene Gives Away Mr. Reed’s Entire Worldview

Reed thinks he can control others through ideological masking and persusision

Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East as two Mormon missionaries in Heretic

The Monopoly monologue arrives at a great time in the film when the confusion and tension about Mr. Reed’s deception of the two Sisters is at an all-time high. At that point in the movie, some questions needed to be answered, and Mr. Reed’s Monopoly monologue certainly delivered, while also engaging the audience in an intriguing discussion. Essentially, Mr. Reed’s point with the Monopoly analogy is that it’s all about controlling others, taking other ideologies and concepts, and ultimately warping them to suit his wants. Like the “inventor” of Monopoly taking the idea of the landlord game and selling it as his own, Mr. Reed tries to drive this idea home in Heretic.