With just over a month left until the Venice Film Festival lineup is announced, buzzy prestige films featuring top talent are emerging as prime contenders for the Golden Lion.
New works by internationally renowned authors, including Florian Zeller, who wrote the psychological thriller “The Bunker,” starring Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz. Martin McDonagh stars in Searchlight Pictures’ political thriller Wild Horse Nine, starring John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell. Bucking Fastard, directed by Werner Herzog and starring Rooney Mara and Kate Mara. It is expected to be one of the highlights, along with Nanni Moretti from “It Will Happen Tonight” co-starring Louis Garrel and Jasmine Trinca, and “Echo Chamber”, the latest drama directed by Italy’s Andrea Palaolo, starring Susan Sarandon, starring Alicia Vikander and Luca Marinelli as enchanting lovers.
As always, Venice’s artistic director Alberto Barbera is racing against time to finalize the 83rd edition of the festival, with some slots still in flux. But what’s already clear is that, like Cannes this year, Venice in 2026 is likely to be less influenced by Hollywood. A combination of studios’ reluctance to spend big on festival premieres, production delays affecting several highly anticipated U.S. films (and possible post-traumatic stress disorder following Joker 2’s harsh reviews) is expected to thin the ranks of major commercial titles. Projects likely to not be ready in time include David Fincher’s “The Adventures of Cliff Booth,” in which Brad Pitt will once again star in the sequel to Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” and Tom’s films. Ford’s “Cry to Heaven” marks Adele’s acting debut.
But there’s still potential for Hollywood star power to be added to the lido in the form of Aaron Sorkin’s “Social Reckoning,” the sequel to “The Social Network,” in which Jeremy Strong replaces Jesse Eisenberg as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. Barbera has not yet seen the finished film, but it is believed that negotiations are underway with Sony about a Venice premiere.
While Netflix may not be bringing The Adventures of Cliff Booth to the festival, it is expected to carry several titles, including Fernando Meirelles’ Here Comes the Flood, a heist thriller starring Denzel Washington, Robert Pattinson and Daisy Edgar-Jones, among others.
It’s also possible that Season 2 of Apple TV+’s Seth Rogen-directed series “The Studio,” which was filmed in March on the Venice Lido with Madonna on set and Barbera made a cameo, could be screened in some form at the festival.
Meanwhile, below is the first batch of titles that could potentially compete for the Golden Lion. As previously announced, Maggie Gyllenhaal will serve as jury foreman.
Aaron Sorkin – “Social Reckoning”
Jeremy Strong will play Mark Zuckerberg (succeeding Jesse Eisenberg) in the sister film to The Social Network, which is based on the events that led to the Wall Street Journal exposé, The Facebook Files. The film tells the story of Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison), a young Facebook engineer who enlists the help of WSJ reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) to blow the whistle on the social network’s most closely guarded secrets. Sony Pictures will release the Bow Chase movie on October 9th.
Florian Zeller – “The Bunker”
This sophisticated thriller stars real married couple Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz as a couple facing tensions as a mysterious construction project – an underground bunker commissioned by a powerful tech mogul – begins to infiltrate their lives. “The Bunker” also stars Paul Dano, Stephen Graham and Patrick Schwarzenegger. Zeller, who made his feature debut in the Oscar-winning film “The Father,” last visited Venice in “The Sun,” starring Hugh Jackman and Laura Dern.
Fernando Meirelles – “The flood is coming”
The film, written by Academy Award nominee Fernando Meirelles (The Two Popes, City of God) and written by Simon Kinberg (Mr. and Mrs. Smith), tells the story of a master thief and a banker who plans a heist. The Netflix movie stars Denzel Washington, Robert Pattinson, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Danai Gurira, and Sean Harris.
Martin McDonagh – “Wild Horse Nine”
Set just before the 1973 Chilean coup, CIA agents Chris and Lee are sent to Easter Island from Santiago. When Chris forms a bond with two rebellious students, it threatens to derail the entire mission. The film stars John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, Tom Waits, and Parker Posey, and was distributed by Searchlight Pictures.
Werner Herzog – “Bucking Fastard”
Herzog’s new film stars Rooney Mara and Kate Mara as Jean and Joan Holbrook, two sisters who attempt to dig a tunnel through a mountain range in search of a fictional land where true love exists. The film was originally invited to be an official entry at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, but director Herzog declined as he was not offered a competition slot. Orlando Bloom and Domhnall Gleeson also star.
Andrea Palaoro – “Echo Chamber”
The film, based on an unfinished screenplay by Bernardo Bertolucci (completed by Ludovica Lampoldi and Ilaria Bernardini), revolves around a man, a woman, and an apartment where an affair takes place. The cast includes Alicia Vikander, Susan Sarandon, and Luca Marinelli. Palaoro’s previous works, “Hanna” and “Monica,” were both submitted to the Venice competition.
Stéphane Brise – “The Good Little Soldier”
The film stars Alba Rohrwacher as a woman navigating a corporate environment where vulnerability is not an asset. Carla, 43, is a high-achieving executive newly hired as a human resources manager at a large insurance company and tasked with re-branding. Also starring Vincent Lindon.
Cedric Kahn – “15/18” (also known as “A Place to Heal”)
Set in the adolescent psychiatry unit of a public hospital in France, the film follows the volatile rhythms of teenagers coming and going as a doctor and his team navigate a constant cycle of treating, listening, and confronting their suffering. The arrival of a new patient threatens to upset the ward’s fragile balance when 17-year-old Lucia is taken back by the police.
Ilya Khrzhanovsky — “DAU: Mother”
It is the next major work in Khrzhanovsky’s monumental “DAU” project, which took him over two and a half years to complete. “DAU. Natasha” and “DAU. Degeneration” premiered at the 2020 Berlin International Film Festival. Mr. Khrzhanovsky, who has renounced his Russian citizenship and has been an outspoken critic of Putin’s government, has also faced allegations about his treatment of women on the set of “DAU.Natasha.”
Nanni Moretti – “It Will Hap Tonight”
The drama is loosely based on the short story collection Hungry Heart by Israeli author Eshkol Nevo, and was co-written by Moretti with Federica Pontremoli and Valia Santella. Starring Louis Garrel, Jasmine Trinca, and Angela Finocchiaro. This is Moretti’s first collaboration with Garrel, and his first with Trinca since 2001’s The Son’s Room. “It Will Happen Tonight” will likely be the first new work from Lido in more than 20 years for Moretti, who has had nine films in competition at Cannes.
The 84th edition of Venice will be held from September 2nd to 12th, and the festival lineup will be announced on July 23rd.
