Mubi has scooped up North American rights to Lukas Dhont’s “Coward” on the Cannes Film Festival, touchdown one of many buzzier titles on this yr’s competitors. The queer romantic drama earned one of many longest standing ovation for a movie on this yr’s competitors lineup.
Mubi beforehand bought the film for worldwide territories, buying all rights to “Coward” for the U.Ok., Eire, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand.
It marks Dhont’s follow-up to his 2022 hit “Close,” which was nominated for finest worldwide function on the Oscars (and was additionally acquired by Mubi for a number of territories, together with the U.Ok., Eire, Latin America, Turkey and India). The Belgian filmmaker’s 2018 debut “Girl” received the Digicam d’Or after premiering in Un Sure Regard, and “Close” debuted in competitors and received the Grand Prix in Cannes earlier than its Oscar journey.
“Coward” is ready within the midst of WWI and follows Pierre, a soldier newly arrived on the entrance who is raring to show himself. Behind the strains, he meets Francis, who decides to elevate the spirits of his comrades by placing collectively a theater present. Whereas the violence continues, each males attempt to discover methods to flee the brutality of warfare, even when just for a second. The movie stars Emmanuel Macchia in his debut movie efficiency as Pierre and Valentin Campagne (“Colours of Time,” “Case 137”) as Francis.
“Coward” reunites Dhont with many creatives who labored on his earlier options, “Girl” and “Close,” together with co-writer Angelo Tijssens, producer Michiel Dhont, cinematographer Frank van den Eeden, manufacturing designer Eve Martin, music from Valentin Hadjadj, editor Alain Dessauvage and sound from Yanna Soentjens. “Coward” is a manufacturing by the Reunion, Lumen, Topkapi Movies & Versus (Opus) in co-production with France 2 Cinéma, VTM, RTBF, Proximus, BeTV & Orange. The movie is distributed in Benelux by Lumière and in France by Diaphana Distribution. The Match Manufacturing unit is dealing with worldwide gross sales.
Mubi is at Cannes with a string of movies, together with “Minotaur,” “Fatherland,” “Hope” and “Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.”
