COWARD

Los Angeles Premiere | Belgium, France | 2026 | Drama, War, Period, Romance | Belgium’s Official 2027 Oscar Entry | 120 min | In French with English subtitles

Directed by: Lukas Dhont
Written by: Lukas Dhont, Angelo Tijssens
Produced by: Michiel Dhont & Lukas Dhont (The Reunion), Juliette Schrameck (Lumen), Laurette Schillings, Frans van Gestel & Sebastian Korteweg (Topkapi Films), Jacques-Henri Bronckart & Tatjana Kozar (Versus Production)
Cinematography: Frank Van den Eeden
Original Score: Valentin Hadjadj
Film Editing: Alain Dessauvage
Cast: Emmanuel Macchia (Pierre), Valentin Campagne (Francis), Willem de Schryver (Jacobs), Boris Bouchat (Thomas), Mistral Guidotti (Gustaaf Cooreman), Anaëlle Fournier (Mathilde), Jonas Wertz, Jef Jacobs (Jozef Stevens)
International Sales: The Match Factory
US Distributor: Mubi
US Release Date: TBA

Synopsis

Shipped off to fight in WWI, young recruit Pierre does his best to keep up a brave face, but the utter brutality of his first weeks on the battlefield is a rude awakening. Then he meets Francis, the flamboyant impresario of the platoon’s morale-raising, cross-dressing theater troupe and joins their ranks. Juxtaposing the bloodbath of war and the exuberance of amateur drag shows, Lukas Dhont‘s latest foray into LGBTQ repression poses the question, “What is cowardice and what is courage?” And his two remarkable leads, both absolute beginners, walked off with the Best Actor award in Cannes for their exquisite performances in this most delicate of first-love stories.

Director’s bio

Belgian director Lukas Dhont is known for his searing explorations of queer anguish. He wrote and directed five short films between 2012 and 2021. His first feature, Girl (2018), a coming-of-age film about a trans girl who aspires to become a ballerina, premiered in Cannes, where it won both the Camera d’Or and the Queer Palm; was nominated for a Golden Globe; and won four Magritte Awards, including Best Flemish Film and Best Screenplay. Close (2022), his second feature, recounting the deeply intimate affection between two 13-year-old boys, won the Grand Prix in Cannes, was nominated for an Oscar as Best International Film, nabbed seven Magritte Awards, and was named Best International Film by the National Board of Review. Coward premiered in Cannes in May, where it was awarded the Prix du Cinéma Positif, in addition to the Best Actor award. It has also been selected as Belgium’s official Best International Feature entry for next year’s Academy Awards.