83rd Venice Film Festival: Stars, an Oasis Film and Big Names in Competition

The opening is formed by the new film by "Trainspotting" director Danny Boyle, "Ink", which tells the story of the British tabloid "The Sun" and its media entrepreneur Rupert Murdoch. In the lead role, Guy Pearce plays the media mogul, while Jack O'Connell embodies a uncompromising newspaper editor. The film will be shown out of competition and is considered a political opening contribution about modern tabloid journalism.

German and International Entries in Competition

In the main competition for the Golden Lion are 20 films, including "Bucking Fastard" by Werner Herzog with Kate Mara, Rooney Mara and Orlando Bloom. The German director, who returns to Venice after a longer break, dedicates the film to the true case of the twin sisters Greta and Freda Chaplin. "Herzog has always entrusted us with bizarre, quirky and unusual characters," said Barbera about the selection.

Also competing for the Golden Lion is Florian Zeller with "Bunker", in which the married couple Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem take the lead roles. Casey Affleck presents his film "Company" with Nick Nolte in the lead role, and Martin McDonagh, whose earlier works "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" and "The Banshees of Inisherin" also ran in Venice, shows with "Wild Horse Nine" a new entry featuring John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell. "Wild Horse Nine" is considered one of the competition highlights, as is "The Echo Chamber" by Andrea Pallaoro with Luca Marinelli, Alicia Vikander and Susan Sarandon.

Italian Cinema and Bertolucci Tribute

From Italian cinema, Nanni Moretti returns to Venice with "Succederà questa notte", featuring Louis Garrel and Jasmine Trinca. Moretti's return to the Lido is particularly highlighted by the festival, as the Roman director has already been awarded there several times. Additional attention is also drawn by the seven-hour documentary "Joie de vivre" by Luca Guadagnino, which extensively examines the work of the director Bernardo Bertolucci, who died in 2018, and analyzes his significance for cinema history.

The German-Austrian co-production "Oase" by Jannis Lenz also made it into the sidebar Orizzonti. The film stars Florian Geißelmann, Anton Petzold and Godehard Giese. Austria is represented in the same section with Manuel Wetscher's debut film "Eklipse". A total of 19 films were invited to the Orizzonti competition, underscoring the diversity of the program.

Oasis Documentary as Musical Highlight

Musical excitement is caused by a world premiere outside the competition: the documentary "Oasis – Don't Look Back in Anger" by Dylan Southern and Will Lovelace, which accompanies the band's reunion and in which Liam and Noel Gallagher tell the background of the "reunion miracle" for the first time. "The Gallagher brothers have promised that they will be in Venice," said Barbera, confirming the personal attendance of the two musicians. The documentary runs in the "Venezia Open – Fuori Concorso" section.

The jury presidency is taken over this year by Maggie Gyllenhaal, who will also present her short film "Flesh Impact" in Venice. With her dual role as juror and filmmaker, she underscores the artistic direction of the festival. The jury president is Maggie Gyllenhaal, as the festival officially announced.

Jury and Prominent Contributions Outside the Competition

In addition to the competition, other prominent contributions await: "Primetime" by Lance Oppenheim with Robert Pattinson in the lead role also competes for the Golden Lion. Outside the competition, among others, the film "Place to Be" (directed by Kornél Mundruczó) with Pamela Anderson, Taika Waititi and the 93-year-old Ellen Burstyn will screen. Laura Poitras, who won the Golden Lion in 2022 for "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed", shows a documentary about the political situation in Minneapolis during the operations of the US immigration agency ICE.

Lifetime achievement honors go this year to Hollywood star Russell Crowe as well as actress Ellen Burstyn, who became known among other things for her role in "The Exorcist". Both will be awarded a Golden Lion for their lifetime achievement, as the festival announced. Crowe will also present his documentary "What Love Builds" in the "Venezia Open – Fuori Concorso" section. The film "15/18 (A Place to Heal)" by Cédric Kahn and Wim Wenders' documentary "From Inside Out - The Architecture of Peter Zumthor" are also part of the program.

Lifetime Achievement Honors

The program is rounded off by the closing film "Dio Ride" out of competition. With the mix of political material, biographical documentaries and major competition works, the festival underscores its cultural radiance. "I don't believe there is another art form that can simultaneously unfold such a strong aesthetic, cultural and social impact," said Barbera on the significance of cinema.

The organizers are deliberately banking on artistic diversity with the 2026 selection: from British tabloid journalism to the staffing of the magazine "The Sun" to the tribute to Italian director Bertolucci, from German contributions in the sidebar to American independent productions with stars like Robert Pattinson, the spectrum ranges. With 20 competition films, 19 Orizzonti entries and numerous special screenings, the 83rd edition offers a dense program that once more proves Venice's position as one of the most important film festivals in the world.