Will Ruben Östlund’s new film be ready for the 2026 Cannes Film Festival?

The director says a little more about his highly anticipated The Entertainment System Is Down.

The new film by the Swedish director, crowned Palme d’Or twice in 2017 for The Square and in 2022 for Without filteris surely one of the most anticipated projects. But will he be at Cannes this year?

Asked by Variety on the presence of his film at the festival, Ruben Östlund confides that he does not want to rush:

“In February we will know how much more time we need. As a director it is very important for me to see the dynamic of the film in a room with people watching it. I need to be able to organize test screenings because there are very sensitive elements here, including a 15-minute sequence. I had a painful experience with Play because I didn’t have enough time to do the test screenings. I’m not going to put myself in that situation again.”

Test screenings are often frowned upon by authors, because they are used by studios to impose changes on the editing of a film. But Östlund sees things another way:

“They are completely wrong because the collective experience we have at the cinema changes the rhythm of the film. It’s not about asking the public: ‘do you prefer this or that?‘It’s about sitting down with them as a director and feeling the energy in the room.“

If his previous feature film, Without filterfeatured characters adrift on a boat that was taking on water, his new feature film takes place aboard a long-haul flight with a broken video system. The Entertainment System Is Down is carried by a prestigious cast. We will find Kirsten Dunst (Marie Antoinette), Keanu Reeves (John Wick), Daniel Brühl and Woody Harrelson (True Detective).

Asked about the character of Keanu Reeves who plays an electrician here, the director also portrayed Variety the whole comic dimension of the character:

“He has very stiff comic qualities in his performance, and it worked really well. I am very excited to see how the audience will react to his performance. (…) Played with the audience’s perception of Keanu Reeves in relation to his character in this film was really fun.”

The new Ruben Östlund, like his previous productions, therefore combines humor and societal criticism. A cinematic journey which promises to be colorful since the filmmaker announced in 2023 that the film “will lead to the most departures from a cinema in the history of the Cannes Film Festival“. And it won’t be the first time…

For some time now, the director has been dropping clues here and there, for example revealing filming photos on his Instagram account. Today, Östlund informed Variety about the plot of the film: “The characters will be in physical danger in this film, but they won’t realize it until the last 15 minutes of their lives.”

Synopsis: “On a long haul flight. Shortly after takeoff, passengers learn from cabin crew that there will be no entertainment on this flight because the screens no longer work. At first, the batteries of the electronic devices are still sufficiently charged but soon, the passengers find themselves alone with their thoughts.”

If the Swedish director achieves this much for Cannes, will he win a third Palme d’Or with The Entertainment System Is Down ?