First things first, here’s what Variety has to say about the upcoming actors strike interfering with the Venice Film Festival. Spoiler: it sounds like a major headache for Venice boss Alberto Barbera.
As of press time on Thursday, the studios’ festival gameplan is still unclear. Sources indicate there are ongoing discussions about pulling films from fall festivals entirely and moving their release dates. Alternately, if festival premieres are maintained, they’ll likely happen without the support of their actors. For Venice — a festival recognized for its mega-watt star power and glitzy red carpets — this is going to hurt.
The Venice Film Festival is supposed to announce its lineup two weeks from now. Barbera must be trying to wheel and deal himself out of this mess. I also presume TIFF having only announced one title so far might have something l to do with the strike. How can you curate a lineup of films when there is so much uncertainty?
The Variety piece goes on to add the usuals going to Venice, Mann’s “Ferrari,” Cooper’s “Maestro” and Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla” are all mentioned. But, wait, they also include Fincher’s “The Killer”? They say it is being “tipped” to premiere at Venice.
The question is whether these contenders stay in the line-up between now and July 25, or whether U.S. studios delay their Oscar-season launches for what may be a relatively brief time gap caused by the strike.
Last Friday, I was rather stunned by an Italian source telling me that Netflix was thinking about bringing Fincher’s “The Killer” to Venice. This source had told me, “negotiations are underway, Barbera did see it and he wants it in competition.”
Instead of letting it go, I started emailing around to those who might be in-the-know about such things. The answers I received mostly consisted of, something like, “Netflix is still deciding.”
Fincher’s film is up there with our most anticipated of the fall, alongside Lanthimos, Miyazaki, Payne and a few others.
“The Killer” has been in the can since late February. It was given an MPAA rating that suggests very Fincher-esque theatrics: Rated R for strong violence, language and brief sexuality.
The film had been screened for Netflix execs and staff in late April. I was told that the room was left stunned by the end of the 150 minute film. Another reaction came in June and it was another rave. It is supposed to be released in November.
Zeller’s feature debut, “The Father,” was an acclaimed and Oscar-winning film. Many believe he struck out with his sophomore effort, 2022’s critically maligned “The Son.” This is another miss.