SXSW Lineup: ‘O’Dessa’ and ‘Holland’ Exist! Where’s ‘Wizards’?

On 09.03.24 I listed 11 films that were still missing from the movie year calendar. Two of them have now shown up in today’s announcement of the 2025 SXSW Film lineup.

First off, there’s Jeremy Gasper’s “O’Dessa,” starring Sadie Sink, Kelvin Harrison Jr and Regina Hall. This was shot a few years ago and will finally be revealed at SXSW. Jasper directed the 2017 Sundance breakout “Patti Cake$,” and this is set to be his sophomore effort. Here’s the synopsis:

A farm girl in search to recover a cherished family heirloom. She travels to a strange and dangerous city where she meets her one true love. To save his soul, she must put the power of destiny to the ultimate test.

The other long-delayed title is Mimi Cave’s “Holland,” shot in early 2023, starring Nicole Kidman as a small town wife who suspects her husband of leading a double life. Cave is coming off her 2022 debut, “Fresh” — an inventive cannibal dramedy starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sebastian Stan.

Other notable films set for a SXSW 2025 debut include Gavin O’Connor’s “The Accountant 2,” Babak Anvari’s “Hallow Road,” Matt Johnson’s “Nirvana the Band Show the Movie,” Christopher Landon’s “Drop,” and Alex Scharfman’s “Death of a Unicorn.”

Notice, David Michod’s “Wizards” is yet again notably absent. At this point, it’s gone beyond asking about the status of this film, and into worrisome mode. Last we heard, one of its stars, Franz Rogowski, claimed a new edit was being worked on. You can read more detailed background of this film here.

Ever since I posted the “missing” list more than five months ago, four titles have come off — we still haven’t heard much concrete release info on these:

Duke Johnson’s “The Actor” (shot in 2022)
Andrew Patterson’s “Rivals of Amziah King” (2023)
Gareth Evans’ “Havoc” (2021)
Andrew Stanton’s “In the Blink of An Eye” (2023)
David Michôd’s “Wizards!” (2022)
Daniel Goldhaber’s “Faces of Death” (2023)
Michael Pearce’s “Echo Valley” (2023)