What you need to know
Natalie Portman has added Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Charlie XCX to her long list of co-stars.
The Gallerist, from director and co-writer Cathy Yan, premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival on Saturday, January 24th.
Portman, 44, stars in the film, playing a character named Polina Polinsky, who wears eccentric clothing and has platinum blonde hair. The official Sundance synopsis describes Polinsky as a “desperate gallerist who conspires to sell a dead body at Art Basel Miami.”
During a post-screening Q&A, Portman answered a question about incorporating her own personal experiences into the desperate character.
“I’ve never tried to sell a corpse before,” she said jokingly. “It’s not a one-on-one relationship.”
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But Yang and co-writer James Pedersen’s script spoke to something deeper, explained Portman, who also produced the film.
“It’s literal alchemy, and that’s what we do as artists. We take something out of our soul and it becomes a product. There’s magic in that, and there’s fear in that,” she continued.
Provided by Sundance Institute
Portman added that The Gallerist speaks to “those of us who make art, but who obviously depend on the market to keep doing what we want to do.”
“Also, what Kathy said in our first meeting resonated very well, but it was just a slippery slope of compromise,” Star further elaborated. “I was like, ‘Okay, I can do that.’ And then you take that step and you think, ‘Okay, maybe I can do that.’ And before you know it, you’ll be washing the blood off your hands. ”
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Making his first appearance at Sundance, the Oscar winner shared the stage with Ortega, 23, Charlie, 33, Jan, and co-writer James Pedersen.
The cast also stars Zeta-Jones, 56, who was unable to attend the event due to travel difficulties, as well as Sterling K. Brown, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Daniel Brühl and Zach Galifianakis.
Charli will be premiering three films as an actress at this year’s Sundance: The Gallerist, Greg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, and Aidan Zamiri’s mockumentary The Moment.
The 2026 Sundance Film Festival will be held from January 22nd to February 1st in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah.
This will be the last iteration of the fest to be held there before moving to Boulder, Colorado in 2027. It will then be the first event held at the new location since the death of founder Robert Redford.
