Harry Lighton’s debut feature, “Pillion,” was one of the more talked-about titles in this year’s Un Certain Regard sidebar at Cannes. The film, adapted from Adam Mars-Jones’ 1998 novel Box Hill, is a sexually graphic and unapologetically kinky exploration of dom/sub dynamics, reframed as a tender gay romance.
Alexander Skarsgård stars as Ray, a leather-clad motorcycle dom who thrives on emotional withholding, while Harry Melling plays Colin, a shy traffic warden who finds himself caught in Ray’s orbit. What begins as a lopsided power dynamic gradually morphs into something deeper, with Colin pushing back against Ray’s control and discovering his own strength.
The sex in “Pillion” is practically unfiltered — at times shocking — which makes it unsurprising that editor Gareth C. Scales revealed during a Q&A at the Vancouver International Film Festival that the festival cut had been rated NC-17 by the MPA. Scales added that an edit of the film is now in the works to secure an R rating for wider release. Apparently, the MPA told A24 the sex scenes felt “too realistic.”
“Pillion” won the Best Screenplay prize in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section and has since screened at Telluride, the New York Film Festival, and BFI London. A24 plans to release the film theatrically in early 2026.