COWARD
Special Features: Special Presentation | 2027 Oscar® Selection, Belgium
Arriving at the Western Front two years into the First World War, stoic Belgian farmhand Pierre (Emmanuel Macchia) is determined to prove his mettle. But the horrific realities of battle bear little resemblance to the heroic ideals he has inherited. Behind the lines, he meets Francis (Valentin Campagne), a devil-may-care tailor’s son who has assembled a troupe of soldiers to entertain their comrades, their flamboyant performances challenging conventional masculinity and creating a fragile pocket of freedom within a world governed by violence and conformity. When Pierre joins the troupe, his growing connection with Francis awakens desires that neither can safely acknowledge, and as their bond deepens, the prospect of a life beyond the battlefield becomes both a tantalizing possibility and a perilous choice. With this unexpected romance, Academy Award®–nominated Belgian filmmaker Lukas Dhont (CLOSE, GIRL) casts the trenches as a crucible in which conventional ideas of courage are unsettled and the makeshift stage as an alternate reality where tenderness and creative expression can briefly flourish. Yet art provides no absolute sanctuary, and each moment of release is sharpened by the violence that surrounds it. Anchored by the compelling performances of Macchia and Campagne, who shared the Best Actor Award at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, Dhont’s bravura third feature explores the distance between public duty and private longing, questioning what bravery truly means and subverting the tropes and tragedies of a traditional war narrative to find hope and love in the darkest of places. –Abbie Algar
Official Selection, 2026 Toronto and London film festivals. DIR/SCR Lukas Dhont; SCR Angelo Tijssens; PROD Michiel Dhont. Belgium/France/Netherlands, 2026, color, 125 min. In French and Dutch with English subtitles. NOT RATED
Run Time: 125 Minutes
Opening Date: Saturday, December 12, 2026
Genre: War drama
