Sundance unveils lineup for final Utah festival

The Sundance Film Festival unveiled a lineup of 90 feature films for its 2026 edition, running January 22 to February 1 as the festival’s final year in Park City, Utah, before relocating to Boulder, Colorado in 2027.ksat
Pop star Charli XCX appears in three films including mockumentary “The Moment,” while Olivia Wilde directs “The Invite” alongside Seth Rogen, and documentaries spotlight Brittney Griner, Salman Rushdie, and Billie Jean King.ksat
The festival will honor late founder Robert Redford, who died in September at age 89, with legacy screenings celebrating over 40 years in Park City, according to programming director Eugene Hernandez.ksat

Sundance Unveils Star-Studded Lineup for Final Utah Festival

The Sundance Film Festival announced its 2026 program on Wednesday, revealing 90 feature films and seven episodic projects for its final edition in Park City, Utah, before relocating to Boulder, Colorado, in 2027. The festival, running January 22 to February 1, marks a poignant milestone as the first since founder Robert Redford’s death in September at age 89.ksat

The lineup features a mix of emerging voices and established talent, with 40% of feature directors making their first films. Selected from 4,255 feature submissions across 16,201 total entries from 164 countries, the program includes 97% world premieres.deadline

Pop Star and Documentary Spotlight

Pop singer Charli XCX appears in three films, most prominently in “The Moment,” a mockumentary about a rising star preparing for her first arena tour. Festival director Eugene Hernandez described it as “like her version of ‘This is Spinal Tap'”. She also features in Gregg Araki’s erotic thriller “I Want Your Sex,” starring Cooper Hoffman, and ensemble piece “The Gallerist”.ksat

The documentary slate includes high-profile subjects: “The Brittney Griner Story,” directed by Alexandria Stapleton, chronicles the WNBA star’s 2022 detention in Russia. “Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie,” directed by Alex Gibney, examines the 2022 attack on the author. Additional documentaries profile tennis legend Billie Jean King, musician Courtney Love, and Nelson Mandela.abcnews

Starry Features and Final Farewell

Olivia Wilde returns to directing with “The Invite,” a comedy about a crumbling marriage, starring Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton—her first feature since 2022’s “Don’t Worry Darling”. Other notable films include Cathy Yan’s art-world satire “The Gallerist,” starring Natalie Portman and Jenna Ortega, and Beth de Araújo’s “Josephine,” featuring Channing Tatum and Gemma Chan.ksat

“It’s a broad, eclectic and bold program,” Hernandez told The Associated Press, noting the lineup “really honors” the festival’s final Utah year with “this mixture of new, exciting voices paired with some really, really great familiar faces from Sundances past”.kutv

The 2026 edition will honor Redford’s legacy with special screenings and celebrations of the festival’s 40-plus years in Park City. The move to Colorado follows declining post-pandemic attendance and limited venue capacity, though the 2024 festival still generated an estimated $132 million economic impact for Utah. Competition titles will remain available for online viewing.abcnews