Venice Film Festival unveils a star-studded lineup amid Hollywood strike
The Venice Film Festival has unveiled its lineup amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors and WGA writers strike.
Among the films premiering at the 2023 Biennale are new offerings from Bradley Cooper, Sofia Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos, Michael Mann and Ava DuVernay.
Opening the festival on August 30 is “Comandante,” an Italian period drama from director Edoardo De Angelis starring Pierfrancesco Favino, who starred in “The Traitor.”
“Society of the Snow” from J.A. Bayona will close the festival on September 9.
Cooper’s second directorial effort, “Maestro,” will play, although it is unclear if Cooper will attend.
Ava DuVernay will compete with her new feature, “Origin.”
“Poor Things,” starring Emma Stone as a woman brought back to life by a 19th-century scientist, is set to compete.
“La La Land” director Damien Chazelle will head up this year’s international jury, with directors Jane Campion, Martin McDonagh, and Laura Poitras also judging.
While the movie lineup is filled with A-list actors and big-name directors, it remains unclear which talent will be allowed to actually attend the festival amid the strike.
Festival director Alberto Barbera said in his opening speech if the strike is still ongoing there will likely be premieres without the film’s cast on the red carpet.
In the meantime, producers can apply for SAG-AFTRA waivers so the stars of their films can attend and not break strike rules. He added the independent and foreign films are unlikely to be impacted by the strike and will be able to have their talent participate.
Barbera promised overall the red carpet “will not be empty” of talent.
See the full in-competition lineup for the 2023 Venice International Film Festival below.
“Comandante,” Edoardo de Angelis (opening night film)
“Adagio,” Stefano Sollima
“La Bête,” Bertrand Bonello
“DogMan,” Luc Besson
“El Conde,” Pablo Larrain
“Enea,” Pietro Castellitto
“Evil Does Not Exist,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi
“Ferrari,” Michael Mann
“Finalmente L’Alba,” Saverio Costanzo
“The Green Border”, Agnieszka Holland
“Holly,” Fien Troch
“Hors-Saison,” Stéphane Brizé
“Io Capitano,” Matteo Garrone
“The Killer,” David Fincher
“Lubo,” Giorgio Diritti
“Maestro,” Bradley Cooper
“Memory,” Michel Franco
“Origin,” Ava DuVernay
“Poor Things,” Yorgos Lanthimos
“Priscilla,” Sofia Coppola
“The Promised Land,” Nikolaj Arcel
“Die Theorie Von Allem,” Timm Kroger
“Woman Of,” Malgorzata Szumowska, Michal Englert.