AFP-BNS – U.S. megastar Julia Roberts will make her debut this year at the Venice Film Festival, which will also feature Jude Law, who portrayed Russian President Vladimir Putin in a recent film.
Roberts is one of many major Hollywood stars expected to attend the increasingly influential Venice film gala starting at the end of August. The premiere of her latest movie, After the Hunt, produced by Amazon, will take place there.
According to the festival’s artistic director, Alberto Barbera, the film, directed by Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino – a regular guest at Venice – tells the story of a sexual assault case at a prestigious American university. However, this film will not compete for the top prize, the Golden Lion.
“This is the first time Julia Roberts will walk the Venice red carpet, so we’re very excited to have her,” Barbera told journalists while presenting the festival’s program, which runs from August 27 to September 9.
The main competition lineup, where films vie for the prestigious Golden Lion for Best Film, includes many star-studded titles, such as The Wizard of the Kremlin by French director Olivier Assayas.
The film is an adaptation of the bestselling book by Giuliano da Empoli about Putin’s rise to power, with British actor Jude Law portraying the Kremlin leader.
Among other films selected for the competition are the latest works from American Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow, A House of Dynamite, and Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother, starring Adam Driver and Cate Blanchett.
In The Smashing Machine, directed by Benny Safdie, Dwayne Johnson plays a 1990s wrestling champion. According to Barbera, Emily Blunt gives a “memorable performance” as his wife.
Also selected was Guillermo del Toro’s controversial new take on Frankenstein, with Barbera saying that Netflix “spared no expense in bringing del Toro’s vision to life.”
American director Noah Baumbach returns with the comedy Jay Kelly, co-written with his wife Greta Gerwig. George Clooney stars as an actor experiencing an identity crisis.
A Film About Gaza
In addition to five Italian films and several from Hollywood, the festival also selected a film about the war in Gaza, expected to be the most overtly political entry in the main competition.
Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice of Hind Rajab reconstructs the death of six-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, who was killed by Israeli forces last year.
In January 2024, she was fleeing the Israeli assault on Gaza City with her family when their car was attacked.
In the internationally condemned incident, she was heard – the only survivor in the heavily damaged vehicle – desperately calling the Red Crescent for help.
She and two Red Crescent workers who went to rescue her were later found dead.
Barbera said this is one of the films that will “deeply move audiences,” and added he hopes it won’t spark controversy.
“I get emotional thinking about this film,” he said, noting that Ben Hania used authentic phone recordings and interviews with the girl’s mother and uncle in the production.