As with any big festival lineup announcement, there are going to be some questions. With Toronto and Venice both featuring star-studded, highly-anticipated films, there are still a few projects that film fans have been waiting for that are nowhere to be seen.
One of the missing films is the latest from Harmony Korine, titled “Beach Bum.” Even if you haven’t heard of the film, specifically, you’re still probably familiar with set photos featuring Matthew McConaughey. The Oscar-winning actor has been spotted in numerous set photos sporting the loudest floral shirts, a fanny pack, long blonde hair, and some of the best sunglasses you’ll find. Needless to say, people are dying to see what Korine has up his sleeve, but unfortunately, the film is MIA at Venice.
According to Variety, who spoke with Venice Film Festival director Alberto Barbera, the film is without a US or Italian distributor, which ruled out a trip to Italy. However, Barbera says that McConaughey’s performance is “Oscar-worthy.” Variety also says the film has an April 2019 release date, but without a distributor, we’re not exactly sure how that’s possible. Questions abound with Korine’s “Spring Breakers” follow-up.
Another film that has been conspicuously absent from the fall festival circuit, so far, is Joel Edgerton’s “Boy Erased.” That film is being looked at as a potential awards contender later this year but hasn’t been announced as premiering at either Toronto or Venice. As for other contenders that aren’t in Venice, you have “Beautiful Boy” and “If Beale Street Could Talk.” However, we know why those are skipping Italy this year, as they are both world-premiering at TIFF.
READ MORE: ‘Boy Erased’ Trailer: Lucas Hedges Plays A Struggling Gay Teen Sent To Conversion Therapy
The final major question missing film from the fall festival circuit is Xavier Dolan’s “The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.” The latest film from Dolan has been the subject of much speculation, as it’s rumored to have been passed up by Cannes earlier this year due to its subpar quality. However, since the film has been in post-production for a year or more, many people just assumed that we’d see ‘Donovan’ at one of the fall festivals.
READ MORE: Xavier Dolan Explains Why ‘John F. Donovan’ Won’t Premiere At Cannes
Variety says the reason you don’t see Dolan’s latest at Venice or Toronto this year is because of some behind-the-scenes strife between the filmmaker and the distributor, with “creative conflict” being the term used. This makes perfect sense, as it appears that Dolan has made huge changes to his film, going so far as to eliminate Jessica Chastain’s character completely. So, we still await word on when that film will see the light of day.
Even with these noticeable holes, the lineups for Toronto and Venice are stacked. If you’re a film fan, there’s a lot to look forward to in the coming months.