Sundance shares its lineup, and plans farewells

The 2026 festival will be the last in Utah, and the first without Robert Redford.

- BY MARK OLSEN

When Sundance kicks off in a little under two months, it will face a unique challenge.

Unspooling for the last time in its longtime home of Park City, Utah, the festival must somehow pay tribute to the legacy and history of an event that has become very tied to the bundled-up, snow-capped romanticism of that specific place.

At the same time, there needs to be an air of excitement and expectation about moving on to the festival's new home in Boulder, Colo., beginning with the 2027 edition.

"We can hold both of those things in our hearts at the same time," says John Nein, senior programmer and director of strategic initiatives, in a video interview this week from Los Angeles, with a warm smile.

On Wednesday, Sundance released its upcoming lineup of 90 feature films and seven episodic projects, at least a handful of which will likely emerge as pacesetters for the rest of the year.

Among the most high-profile titles in this year's forthcoming program are writer-director Cathy Yan's art-world satire "The Gallerist," starring Natalie Portman and Jenna Ortega; David Wain's comedy "Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass," starring Zoey Deutch and Jon Hamm; and the world premiere of "The Moment," starring Charli XCX in a fictional story as a pop star.

Olivia Wilde directs "The Invite," starring alongside Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton as neighbors at a dinner party gone wrong. Ethan Hawke and Russell Crowe costar in Padraic McKinley's "The Weight," a survival drama set in 1930s Oregon.

And among a strong-sounding selection of documentaries will be a number of portraits on notable figures, including musician Courtney Love ("Antihe-roine"), Brittney Griner, the female basketball star who was jailed in Russia ("The Brittney Griner Story"), tennis champion Billie Jean King ("Give Me the Ball") and Nelson Mandela ("Troublemaker").