Michel Franco Has Already Shot A New Film — ‘Circles’ to Premiere in 2026

Michel Franco has quietly been working on a new film. In fact, the Mexican director has already shot it and is eyeing a festival premiere sometime this year. The film is titled “Circles.”

There’s no word yet on plot details, or who stars in it, or when it might premiere—though if Franco’s rhythm holds, it could surface at Berlin, or Venice before the end of the year. Jessica Chastain has starred in Franco’s last two films, and last year they hinted at a third one; maybe this is it?

Franco premiered his latest, “Dreams,” at the 2025 Berlin Film Festival, where it left without any prizes from the Todd Haynes–led jury, and earlier this year it ultimately landed a distribution deal with Greenwich Entertainment. The film arrives in theaters on February 27, 2026.

I used to be a skeptic of Franco’s brand of morose cinema. However, his last three films — “New Order,” “Sundown,” and “Memory” — were very good, and “Dreams,” which I haven’t seen yet, looks promising.

What’s clear is that Franco is working at his own pace, outside of the Hollywood system, on projects that seem to emerge fully formed. It’s the kind of low-profile, high-output model that recalls directors like Hong Sang-soo or the late Claude Chabrol.

“I’ve never worked in Hollywood, and I never will,” Franco recently told Variety. “I’d lose my freedom. I’ve worked too hard to find my voice. Why would I give that up? For money? I don’t love money that much.”

Franco, who’s had three of his last four films premiere in Venice competition, was once a regular at Cannes, with four earlier films debuting across the festival’s key sections. He first appeared in Directors’ Fortnight with “Daniel and Ana” (2009), won Un Certain Regard with “After Lucia” (2012), and took Best Screenplay in competition for “Chronic” (2015). He returned in 2017 with “April’s Daughter,” which earned the Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard. Over the years, Franco has quietly become one of Mexico’s more interesting directors.