All articles tagged with #sundance 2026
THR’s Sundance 2026 critics’ wrap selects 15 favorites spanning provocative narratives and illuminating documentaries—from Olivia Wilde’s I Want Your Sex and The Invite to Gaza doctors in American Doctor, Harlem history in Once Upon a Time in Harlem, and portraits of Billie Jean King, Salman Rushdie, and more—showcasing a broad spectrum of bold storytelling, political insight, and cinematic craft.
At the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, Beth de Araújo’s Josephine swept the top prizes by winning the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award, with a broad slate of winners announced across U.S. Dramatic, U.S. Documentary, World Cinema Dramatic, World Cinema Documentary, and NEXT categories, plus Short Film and Special Jury honors; other notable winners include Nuisance Bear, Shame and Money, To Hold a Mountain, The Incomer, TheyDream, and audience picks like American Pachuco, HOLD ONTO ME, One in a Million, and Aanikoobijigan, with the Festival Favorite to be announced later.
At a Sundance 20th‑anniversary screening of Little Miss Sunshine, Paul Dano said he’s incredibly grateful for the defenders who spoke up after Quentin Tarantino mocked his performance in There Will Be Blood, noting how the world pushed back; the piece recounts cheers from George Clooney, Ben Stiller and others at Sundance and in interviews as the celebrity feud around Tarantino’s remarks playfully unfolds.
Vulture outlines Sundance 2026 sales: Olivia Wilde’s romantic comedy The Invite drew an eight-figure bid, with A24 winning a deal north of $12 million after a 72-hour bidding war, while Neon picked up Adrian Chiarella’s queer horror Leviticus for seven figures and a 2026 release date to be announced. Sales overall have been slower, but buyers remain hopeful about awards-season potential, following last year’s Train Dreams Oscar nod.
After an all-night Sundance bidding war, Olivia Wilde’s relationship comedy The Invite was acquired by A24 in an eight-figure deal—the festival’s biggest sale so far—with bidders including Neon, Focus, Netflix, and Warner Bros.’ indie label in the mix; the film is a remake of the Spanish-language Sentimental and stars Wilde alongside Seth Rogen, Ed Norton, and Penelope Cruz, with Megan Ellison/Annapurna producing. Wilde notes the project was made outside the studio system to maximize creative freedom.
IndieWire’s Sundance review of See You When I See You, adapted from Adam Cayton-Holland’s memoir about his sister’s suicide, follows a privileged family as they navigate collective and personal grief. Cooper Raiff delivers a sympathetic lead performance while EMDR therapy scenes provide emotional grounding; Jay Duplass’s film is earnest and moving, though at times formulaic, with a finale that lingers on healing rather than spectacle.
Donna Kelce and Andrea Swift were photographed hanging out together at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, offering a rare glimpse of the future in-laws bonding off the red carpet.
A decades-in-the-making archival project by William Greaves—finished by his son from 1972 Harlem Renaissance roundtable footage at Duke Ellington’s home—premieres at Sundance 2026 as a monumental, vividly alive meditation on Harlem’s legacy and how its history is interpreted across decades.
Bilge Ebiri’s Sundance review argues The Moment is a half-hearted blend of a real concert doc and a mockumentary, dominated by sponsorships and media demands, and ultimately fails to deliver a genuine portrait of Charli XCX or a sharp satire.
IndieWire’s review of Gregg Araki’s Sundance debut I Want Your Sex frames it as a provocative, sex‑positive satire about a young man drawn into a power‑driven affair with an art‑world provocateur. Blending campy humor with frank sexuality, the film probes desire and self‑discovery amid a toxic, money‑obsessed art scene. While visually uneven and occasionally with stale jokes, it preserves Araki’s transgressive spark and offers moments of genuine insight, earning a B− and noting it’s seeking U.S. distribution.
At Sundance, Beth de Araújo’s Josephine follows eight-year-old Jo after witnessing a rape; the film uses long takes to inhabit her psyche, balancing heavy subject matter with restraint as the courtroom drama unfolds, anchored by Mason Reeves’s mesmerizing performance and strong support from Channing Tatum and Gemma Chan.
IndieWire's Sundance review of Cookie Queens follows four diverse Girl Scouts during cookie season, using slick visuals and a jaunty score to reveal how the six-week sale doubles as a capitalist machine, spotlighting family support, money pressures, and the girls’ negotiation of their own identities and ambitions, with Olive at the center as she questions the price of being the top seller.
At Sundance 2026, Kylie Jenner delivers the film’s standout scene in Charli XCX’s mockumentary The Moment, landing dry, self-parodying lines that showcase true comic timing and outshine other celebrity cameos.
Vulture is live-on-the-ground at Sundance 2026—the festival’s 45th and final edition in Park City—as the industry braces for a 2027 move to Boulder and a post-Redford era. The coverage includes on-site portraits from The Vulture Spot, fireside chats with Vulture writers, and day-by-day buzz on buzzy new films, parties, and star moments that define this last Park City chapter.
Casper Kelly’s Buddy, premiered at Sundance 2026, turns a wholesome 1990s kids’ show into a blood‑soaked, time‑loop horror as a talking orange unicorn murders children who disobey, while a separate storyline follows Grace uncovering a link to a forgotten 1999 program. The film is praised for its audacious concept, meticulous ’90s production design, and its potential to become a cult midnight movie, earning a B+ and aiming for U.S. distribution.