History Channel airing WND Films knockoff

WASHINGTON – The History Channel is airing a documentary tonight with the same title – "The Last Pope?" – and premise as WND Films release from 2013.

"It's a shock to us," said Joseph Farah, co-producer of the 2013 documentary that focuses on Malachy's "Prophecy of the Popes," which emerged in the late 1500s and made predictions about future popes, predicting the last one would be the 112th.

"We just found out about this knockoff. It's the same title – the same premise. Our documentary was the first to take an objective and balanced look that includes the official Vatican position and opinions and insights from a wide variety of Catholic and non-Catholic experts who studied the mystery."

See the trailer for WND's "The Last Pope."

Pope Francis is the 112th. According to Malachy, the last pope would serve until the return of Jesus.

The WND Films project was shot on location in Rome, Geneva, Belfast and the U.S. to study the venerated Irish prophet known as St. Malachy.

Here's what the History Channel says about its movie: "Nine hundred years ago, a Catholic Saint named Malachy was struck with a prophetic series of visions that predicted the identity of each future pope. This ancient prophecy, buried within the Vatican for centuries, suggests that Pope Francis, the latest in the holy line which stretches back nearly 2,000 years, may be destined to be the last pope. It's a warning of cataclysmic proportions, and one that experts believe is remarkably reinforced by some of the most famous writings and miraculous visions in all of Christianity, which may point to an imminent end to the papacy, a shattering of the Church as we know it, or worse, the apocalyptic end of days."

See the trailer for the History Channel's movie.

"It sounds a little more sensational than our movie – possibly more exploitative," says Farah. "Gee, I wonder what took them so long?"

Those interested in seeing the original can watch a digital stream or purchase the DVD here.