Marty Supreme goes wide with Song Sung Blue alongside a handful of notable limited releases from comedy thriller No Other Choice, summer camp scare The Plague and Venice Golden Lion-winner Father Mother Sister Brother, to Ralph Fiennes in The Choral and Amanda Seyfried-starring The Testament of Ann Lee, all of which will all carry indie film into 2026. New openings this week are clustered on Wednesday and Thursday, Dec. 24 and 25, to open the long Christmas holiday weekend.
New limited releases: Independent Film Company debuts The Plague today at New York’s IFC Center and the Laemmle Royal in Los Angeles ahead of a nationwide expansion to about 500 screens on January 2. The film, which premiered at Cannes, sits at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes (off 29 reviews), see Deadline’s here. In the summer of 2003, at an all-boys summer water polo camp with Lord Of The Flies vibes, socially anxious 12-year-old Ben (Everett Blunck) struggles to fit in amidst a ruthless social hierarchy. When he befriends Eli (Kenny Rasmussen) — a lonely, acne-ridden outcast shunned by the others for carrying a ficticious “plague” — Ben becomes entangled in an escalating ritual of scapegoating and fear where cruelty masquerades as a game.
Taken from writer-director Charlie Polinger’s own summer camp experiences, the cast if full of young newcomers including Rasmussen, Blunck and Kayo Martin as ringleader Jake. Joel Edgerton, a producer, plays camp counselor Daddy Wags.
The Plague nabbed three Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations for Best Feature, Best Lead Performance (Blunck) and Best Breakthrough Performance (Martin). Blunk was nominated for a Critics Choice Awards – Best Young Actor. The film took prizes at the Deauville American Film Festival, Sitges, Fantastic Fest and Woodstock Film Festival.
Mubi debuts Jim Jarmusch’s comedy Father Mother Sister Brother Dec. 24 at the Film Forum and Film at Lincoln Center in New York, and Landmark Nuart in Los Angeles. World premiered the Venice Film Festival where it won the top prize, the Golden Lion. See Deadline review. Was the Centerpiece of the New York Film Festival. Tom Waits, Adam Driver, Mayim Bialik, Charlotte Rampling, Cate Blanchett, Vicky Krieps, Indya Moore and Luka Sabbat star in the exploration of the universal intricacies of family dynamics told in the form of a triptych set in New Jersey, Dublin and Paris. Each story concerns the relationships between adult children, their somewhat distant parent (or parents), and each other. Expands nationally Jan. 9.
Neon opens Park Chan-wook’s black comedy No Other Choice on Wednesday at 13 locations in five markets (NY, LA, San Francisco, Chicago, Austin). Based on Donald E. Westlake’s novel The Ax, the story follows Man-su (Lee Byung-hun) on a desperate hunt for a new job after his abrupt layoff from the paper company where he worked for 25 years. Premiered at Venice, see Deadline review, and went on to open the Busan International Film Festival, win the International People’s Choice Award at TIFF, and earn Park the Best Director Award at the Sitges Film Festival. At 99% Certified Fresh with critics on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s South Korea’s Oscar-shortlisted entry for International Feature Film and has three Golden Globe nominations, for Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy; Motion Picture – Non-English Language; and Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for Lee Byun-hun.
The Choral from Sony Pictures Classics opens Thursday in New York (Angelika, New Plaza Cinema) and LA (Laemmle Royal, AMC Burbank). Directed by BAFTA, Olivier and Tony Award winner Nicholas Hytner and written by BAFTA, Olivier and Tony Award winner Alan Bennett, in their fourth collaboration (after The Lady in the Van, The History Boys and The Madness of King George). The film follows a choral society in Yorkshire in 1916 whose male members enlist in World War I, leaving the demanding Dr. Guthrie, played by Ralph Fiennes, to recruit teenagers. Together, they experience the joy of singing while the young boys grapple with their impending conscription into the army. With Roger Allam, Amara Okereke, Simon Russell Beale, Thomas Howes. World premiered at TIFF.
Searchlight Pictures is out with Mona Fastvold’s biopic The Testament Of Ann Lee today in NYC (Village East by Angelika, AMC Lincoln Square) and LA. Premiered at Venice, Deadline review here. At 90% RT Certified Fresh. The story of Ann Lee, founder of the devotional sect known as the Shakers, who preached gender and social equality and was revered by her followers. The film captures Lee’s quest to leave England and build a utopia in the New World and has nabbed star Amanda Seyfried a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. The film features traditional Shaker hymns reimagined as rapturous movements with choreography by Celia Rowlson-Hall and original songs and score by Academy Award winner Daniel Blumberg (The Brutalist). Screenplay by Mona Fastvold and The Brutalist director Brady Corbet.
Wide: Focus Features rolls out Craig Brewer’s Song Sung Blue starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson in 2,400 theaters. The duo play the real-life Mike and Claire Sardina, down-on-their-luck musicians who form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band. Michael Imperioli, Ella Anderson, King Princess, Mustafa Shakir and Hudson Hensley also star, with Fisher Stevens and Jim Belushi. Song Sung Blue World premiered as the Closing Night Film at AFI Fest, see Deadline review. Hudson has a Golden Globe nomination and will be honored with the Icon Award at this year’s Palm Springs International Film Festival. She and Jackman were recognized for their performances with the inaugural Musical Tribute Award at the Gotham Film Awards earlier this month.
Josh Safdie’s Timothée Chalamet-starring Marty Supreme from A24 put up the best limited opening of the year this past weekend at six theaters, setting the table nicely for a big jump to about 2,600 screens on Christmas Day. Chalamet, whose character is based on a brash New York shoe salesman turned ping pong champion, is up for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. The film – 95% Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh — also has Globe noms for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Screenplay for Safdie and Ronald Bronstein.
As per Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro, Song Sung Blue, Marty Supreme (already at $1M) and Angel Studio’s David are eyeing $12M-mid-teens apiece over four days. Marty Supreme could overindex.