The Cannes Film Festival unveiled its 2025 film lineup this week, which features a full slate of films from the world’s top auteurs. The festival has served as an early indicator for which films will contend for awards, with previous Palm D’Or winners including ANORA and PARASITE going on to win Best Picture at the Oscars.
Among the films that are premiering “in competition” at Cannes, Wes Anderson’s THE PHOENICIAN SCHEME and Ari Aster’s EDDINGTON already have distribution deals. PHOENICIAN, which boasts Anderson’s typical A-List ensemble cast of Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Benicio del Toro, and Tom Hanks among others, is scheduled for theatrical release in the U.S. by Focus Features shortly after Cannes concludes on May 30th.
Ari Aster, director of horror classics HEREDITARY and MIDSOMMAR, will be premiering EDDINGTON starring Pedro Pascal, Joaquin Phoenix, and Austin Butler. Its distribution will be handled by A24, which has yet to set a theatrical release date. Films from other renowned directors like Julie Ducournau, Kelly Reichardt, and Richard Linklater will also be competing for top prize at Cannes.
Many other notable films will also premiere at this year’s festival, but outside of the main competition. One of the more notable examples of this is Paramount’s MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FINAL RECKONING, which will have its world premiere at Cannes.
Paramount is betting that a positive reception at Cannes will give the film extra buzz for its theatrical release on May 23rd. It’s a risky bet, given how poor the reception was in 2023 for INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY, which then went on to have a disappointing theatrical release.
Other notable films premiering out of competition are Spike Lee’s HIGHEST TO LOWEST starring Denzel Washington and ELEANOR THE GREAT directed by Scarlett Johansson and starring June Squibb, who has become an industry darling after her starring role in 2024’s indie hit THELMA.
