Overview
- Festival director Alberto Barbera presented the official 83rd Venice Film Festival slate on Thursday, confirming the dates as September 2–12, 2026 and naming Danny Boyle’s Ink as the opening film.
- Florian Zeller’s Bunker, written for Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem, will compete in Venice and is billed as a psychological thriller about a couple drawn into a billionaire’s bunker project.
- The selection gives unusual prominence to documentary features, including the Oasis reunion film Don't Look Back in Anger and Alex Gibney’s lengthy Elon Musk documentary, and shows fewer big-studio tentpoles than past years.
- The press presentation was marked by a dispute when Biennale president Pietrangelo Buttafuoco said the European Commission withdrew €2 million in funding after the Russian pavilion reopened, raising questions about Biennale finances and governance ahead of the festival.
- Venice will also honor George Clooney and Ellen Burstyn with honorary Golden Lions and host new work from established auteurs such as Nanni Moretti, Martin McDonagh, Werner Herzog and Hirokazu Kore-eda, a lineup that may shape awards-season narratives and industry attention.