New York Film Festival unveils lineup to main slate. James Gray opens
and Ava DuVernay closes
[August 06, 2026]
By JAKE COYLE
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Film Festival has unveiled the main slate
of films to its 64th edition, including works from James Gray, Ava
DuVernay and Tony Gilroy.
Organizers for Film at Lincoln Center on Wednesday announced the 32
films selected for its prestigious main slate lineup, all of which will
play at the festival running Sept. 25 to Oct. 12. Kicking off the
festival will be Gray's “Paper Tiger,” a Queens-set crime drama starring
Adam Driver and Miles Teller.
While few of the festival's selections will be making their world
premiere in New York, one exception is Gilroy's “Behemoth!” starring
Pedro Pascal as a cellist. The festival is making “Behemoth!” its
centerpiece gala. Also making its world premiere is Ava DuVernay's
“14th,” a documentary on the much-contested constitutional amendment and
a kind of sequel to her “13th” documentary. DuVernay's latest will close
the festival.
In between, the festival's principle lineup will feature many filmmakers
who have previously brought films to the NYFF, including Pedro Almodovar
(“Bitter Christmas”), Ryusuke Hamaguchi ( “All of a Sudden” ), Andrew
Haigh (“A Long Winter”), Radu Jude (“The Diary of a Chambermaid”), Lee
Chang-dong (“Possible Love”), Mike Leigh (“Tender Loving Care”), Pawel
Pawlikowski ( “Fatherland” ) and Ira Sachs ( “The Man I Love” ).
Other selections include Chris Rock's “Misty Green,” which will first
premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, William and David
Greaves' acclaimed documentary “Once Upon a Time in Harlem” and Julia
Loktev's “My Undesirable Friends: Part II — Exile,” the continuation of
the Russian filmmaker's sprawling documentary of modern-day dissent in
Russia.
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This image released by Neon shows Adam Driver in a scene from "Paper
Tiger." (Neon via AP)
 “It’s hard to recall a prior main
slate program in which the state of the world has been as urgently
reflected in so many creative ways,” Dennis Lim, artistic director
of the festival, said in a statement. “You could take any cross
section of this lineup and come away with a vivid picture of what
our present looks, sounds, and feels like. I’m deeply encouraged to
be able to introduce New York audiences to works by so many
fearless, imaginative directors whose artistry has been inspired by
the shared realities of our world.”
On Tuesday, the festival announced that Takashi Yamazaki's “Godzilla
Minus Zero,” his sequel to 2023's “Godzilla Minus One,” will make
its world premiere at the NYFF on Sept. 26.
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