The 2024 Festival Films You Need to Know
Check out our list of exciting new movies from this year's film festivals, including Cannes, Venice, the New York Film Festival, and more.
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- DirectorYorgos LanthimosStarsEmma StoneJesse PlemonsWillem DafoeA man seeks to break free from his predetermined path, a cop questions his wife's demeanor after her return from a supposed drowning, and a woman searches for an extraordinary individual prophesied to become a renowned spiritual guide.Did you know Yorgos Lanthimos was filming this project while in post-production on 'Poor Things' and planning his fifth project with Emma Stone (a remake of the comedy 'Save the Green Planet')? Of course there's all sorts of anticipation for this anthology film, which Lanthimos co-wrote with his longtime creative partner Efthimis Filippou, and will premiere at Cannes but pretty much skip the festival circuit, opting for a worldwide rollout starting in June. Lanthimos has shared it's a three-part fable, and the cast, which includes 'Poor Things' players Willem Dafoe and Margaret Qualley, as well as Jesse Plemons, Hong Chau, and Hunter Schafer "in a small role," will play different characters in each of the segments. As for the stories themselves: one's about a man without choice who tries to wrest control over his life, the centerpiece about a woman who returns from being missing at sea, and the finale is about the search for a person destined to become a spiritual leader.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. In theaters June 21. - DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsNathalie EmmanuelShia LaBeoufGiancarlo EspositoAn architect wants to rebuild New York City as a utopia following a devastating disaster.Francis Ford Coppola's self-funded sci-fi drama premieres in competition at Cannes, adding to the list of decades-in-the-making passion projects screening at the festival. Coppola contributed $120 million to finish 'Megalopolis,' which tells the story of the rebuilding of a futuristic Roman-inspired metropolis after a devastating disaster. Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, and Shia LaBeouf star.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. Expected in theaters September 2024. - DirectorGeorge MillerStarsAnya Taylor-JoyChris HemsworthTom BurkeThe origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before her encounter and teamup with Mad Max.What a lovely day it was when we got a first look at the 'Mad Max: Fury Road' prequel that will transport us back to the manic, mechanic, high-contrast dystopia created by George Miller more than 30 years ago. This fifth installment in the franchise follows Furiosa from her kidnapping from the Green Place by the warlord known as Dementus. That character — previously known only to those whose love for this franchise spilled over into its 2015 video game — is being played by Chris Hemsworth. We're excited to see him put down Mjolnir and try to contain Anya Taylor-Joy as the future Imperator who eventually looks to take down Immortan Joe and his Citadel. Sure, we didn't "really" need to know how she lost her arm, or see what Immortan Joe looked like in his pre-respirator era, but highly recognizable and under-appreciated actor Lachy Hulme looks to imbue the character with a proper freak factor that will make us rewatch 'Fury Road' as soon as we get home from the movies.
Premieres out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival. In theaters May 24. - DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerDale DickeyJena MaloneChronicles a multi-faceted, 15-year span of pre-and post-Civil War expansion and settlement of the American west.Kevin Costner brings the first chapter of his epic four-part Western series to Cannes ahead of its June 28 theatrical premiere. 'Horizon' has been a 36-year passion project for Costner, based off a story he commissioned in 1988 and is planned as a four-film series, which Costner funded, co-wrote, produced, directed, and stars in. Although the third and fourth films have not gone into production, fans will only have six weeks to wait for more tales of the American west, as 'Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2' drops on Aug. 16.
Premieres out of competition at Cannes Film Festival. In theaters June 28. - DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsVincent CasselDiane KrugerGuy PearceKarsh, an innovative businessman and grieving widower, builds a device to connect with the dead inside a burial shroud.If you're talking about David Cronenberg movies, it's natural to say something like: "His latest is about watching your deceased loved ones decompose in real time." Aside from that particularly challenging story detail, 'Shrouds' will go down as Cronenberg's most personal film to date — if you're unaware, he lost his spouse, film editor Carolyn Cronenberg, in 2017. We hope it has been a form of solace for him to watch his children Caitlin and Brandon emerge as headline-making filmmakers in their own right. 'Shrouds' is Cronenberg's third collaboration with Vincent Cassel (after 'Eastern Promises' and 'A Dangerous Method'), with Diane Krueger playing three different characters, and Guy Pearce in an undisclosed supporting role. Interestingly, Netflix passed on the project, which Cronenberg initially pitched as a series.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. Expected in theaters September 25, 2024. - DirectorAli AbbasiStarsJeremy StrongMaria BakalovaSebastian StanThe story of how a young Donald Trump started his real estate business in 1970s and 80s New York with the helping hand of infamous lawyer Roy Cohn.Perhaps sooner than anyone wanted, a Donald Trump biopic is making its way to the screen, premiering at Cannes this year. Sebastian Stan (who scored an Emmy nomination portraying Tommy Lee in Hulu’s “Pam & Tommy”) stars as Trump during the 1970s and 1980s as he’s mentored by Roy Cohn, the reviled prosecutor best remembered for his work with Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the Red Scare of the 1950s. Stan’s co-star Jeremy Strong (“Succession”) plays Cohn, with Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump, and Martin Donovan as Trump’s father, Fred Trump.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorJacques AudiardStarsZoe SaldanaSelena GomezEdgar RamírezMexico, today. Lawyer Rita receives an unexpected offer. She has to help a feared cartel boss retire from his business and disappear forever by becoming the woman he's always dreamed of being.Crime-thrillers may not spring to mind when you think of musicals, but writer-director Jacques Audiard’s new film could change that. Inspired by a chapter in Boris Razon's novel ‘Écoute,’ and developed from what was originally envisioned as a four-act opera, ‘Emilia Perez’ traces the journey of a feared Cartel leader (Karla Sofía Gascón) who enlists the help of a lawyer (Zoe Saldana) to escape their criminal life and transition into the woman they have always been inside. Pop artist Camille has penned the film’s original songs, and we’re excited to hear co-star Selena Gomez tackle the French singer’s playful songwriting style in this unique musical comedy.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. Expected in theaters August 28, 2024. - DirectorPaul SchraderStarsJoshua BessJean BrassardGregory ConnorsLeonard Fife, one of sixty thousand draft evaders and deserters who fled to Canada to avoid serving in Vietnam, shares all his secrets to de-mythologize his mythologized life.'Oh Canada' is an adaptation of the novel 'Foregone' by Russell Banks, the author who was always suspicious of the movie business until he worked with Paul Schrader on 'Affliction' in 1997 (and with Atom Egoyan on 'The Sweet Hereafter' the same year). Jacob Elordi — who continues to put distance between himself and his 'Kissing Booth' character — plays the younger version of Leonard Fife, while Schrader fans will plotz to see Richard Gere playing the older version of the character. The novel plays with time and memory as Fife suffers from late-stage cancer and the effects of chemotherapy, so we're looking forward to the first reviews of the film to see if the stylistic risks Schrader has taken in the past are on display here.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorEvan JohnsonGalen JohnsonGuy MaddinStarsAlicia VikanderCate BlanchettTakehiro HiraThe leaders of seven wealthy democracies get lost in the woods while drafting a statement on a global crisis, facing danger as they attempt to find their way out.Distinguished filmmaker Guy Maddin re-teams with his 'Green Fog' co-directors, the brothers Galen and Evan Johnson, for what could be a true festival breakout. The satirical nature of the story is essentially a roast of the annual G7 Summit and features a truly international ensemble cast, which includes Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, and Takehiro Hira, who just became even more recognizable with his villainous turn on "Shōgun." With 'Midsommer' director Ari Aster on board as hype man/executive producer, it would be weird if the movie isn't picked up worldwide for distribution, and if you've read the early coverage, any studio would be wise to just let Aster and the filmmakers handle the press rounds for the release.
Premieres out of competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorAndrea ArnoldStarsBarry KeoghanFranz RogowskiJames Nelson-JoyceBailey lives with his brother Hunter and his father Bug, who raises them alone in a squat in northern Kent. Bug doesn't have much time to devote to them. Bailey looks for attention and adventure elsewhere.Barry Keoghan reportedly excused himself from the stacked cast of the upcoming 'Gladiator 2' sequel to star in this drama from director Andrea Arnold, and that's enough to pique our curiosity. Details are scarce, aside from Keoghan's casting as a single father figure named Bug, bringing up two boys in Kent, UK (and some on-set shots showing him shirtless and covered in fake tattoos of creepy crawlers). He'll star alongside Franz Rogowski in this return to narrative filmmaking for Arnold, who's directed on popular series like "Big Little Lies" and "Transparent" since her first Cannes release, 2016's 'American Honey.' By nabbing Keoghan straight off a red-hot run, complete with an Oscar nomination and the 'Saltburn' sensation that carried through to 2024, Arnold has ensured plenty of eyes will be on this competition entry.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorSean BakerStarsMikey MadisonYura BorisovDarya EkamasovaAnora is a comedy about a sex worker shot in New York City and Las Vegas.Know how sometimes you look up an actor you love and wonder why they haven't been on screen much lately? That's how we feel about Mikey Madison, who was truly wondrous as Pamela Adlon's eldest daughter in "Better Things." So to discover she's the lead in 'Tangerine' director Sean Baker's newest movie makes us feel like other people understand what she accomplished on that show. Baker, who is masterful at keeping the secrets of his movies safe until they're released, has indicated this is his biggest budgeted project to date, and it was shot with a polished, 1970s aesthetic, a change-up from his previous, lower-tech approaches to movie making. Thematically it seems to be a new focus for Baker as well, since the story apparently deals with people of means; historically, the director has told stories about people living in the margins and on the fringe of society.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorCoralie FargeatStarsMargaret QualleyDemi MooreDennis QuaidDirector Coralie Fargeat burst onto the festival scene in 2018 with her bold and visceral feminist Neo-exploitation flick, ‘Revenge.’ With comparison’s to French New Extremity films (like ‘Martyrs’ and ‘High Tension’), ‘Revenge’ established the director as a talent to watch. At the time of this writing, plot details for her second film, ‘The Substance,’ were scant. For starters, we don’t know what this “substance” is yet. But we do know Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and Dennis Quaid are starring, and that Fargeat promises it will “push boundaries with a different kind of violence.”
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorMichel HazanaviciusStarsJean-Louis TrintignantDenis PodalydèsGrégory GadeboisIn war-torn times, a poor woodcutter and his wife live in a great forest. One day, the woman finds and rescues a baby girl, bringing irrevocable change to the lives of the couple, and those whose paths the child will cross.We root for Michel Hazanavicius. 'The Artist' won him the 2012 Oscar and made him famous worldwide, while 2014's 'The Search' nearly destroyed him. Then he made under-seen, excellent films in 2017's 'Godard Mon Amour' and 'Final Cut', which debuted at Cannes in 2022 and was based on a 2017 Japanese film. The animation in 'Precious' looks gorgeous and the story heart-rending.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorZhangke JiaStarsTao ZhaoZhubin LiXu ChangchuA Chinese woman lives for herself in silence, celebrating the prosperous Belle Epoque with songs and dance.Zhangke Jia also directed 'A Touch of Sin', a much admired, sometimes loved film that won Jia the Best Screenplay award at Cannes in 2013. His other films In Competition for the Palme d'Or include 2018's 'Ash is the Purest White' and 2015's 'Mountains May Depart,' so 'Tides' is a strong contender for the top prize.
Premieres in competition at Cannes Film Festival. - DirectorRon HowardStarsJennifer ConnellyRita MorenoFrank OzThis Documentary will feature interviews of fans of Jim Hensons work, interspersed with footage from Jim Henson's works, including Wilkins and Wontkins Commercials that were previously lost.If the poster chokes you up, wait until you see the trailer. Director Ron Howard brings this insider biography (it was done in consultation with Henson's children) to Cannes Classics (and shows up on Disney+ on May 31st). Cannes Classics, which typically shows restorations (such as a new, 4K treatment of 'Paris, Texas') and movie-themed docs (such as 'Faye', about the legendary actress (& legendary handful) Faye Dunaway), is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. We kinda hope Paul Williams shows up for the 'Idea Man' premiere. Heck, he co-wrote 'Rainbow Connection' for 'The Muppet Movie.'
Screens as part the of the Cannes Classics program at Cannes Film Festival.