The American Film Institute has revealed some of the films joining its 2025 AFI Fest lineup. “Jay Kelly,” “Nuremberg,” “Dead Man’s Wire” and “Christy” will round out the L.A.-based October festival’s Red Carpet Premiere section. These films join “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere” and the world premieres of “Song Sung Blue” and “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants” in the red carpet lineup.
AFI Fest also announced a robust slate of films to join its Special Screenings section. These movies include “Bad Apples,” “Bugonia,” “The Choral,” “The Chronology of Water,” “Is This Thing On?,” “A Magnificent Life,” “Merrily We Roll Along,” “Nebraska Live,” “Rebuilding,” “Rental Family,” “The Testament of Ann Lee” and “Train Dreams.” “Bad Apples” from director Jonatan Etzler will have its U.S. premiere at the festival, while Thom Zimny’s “Nebraska Live” will have its world premiere.
Zimny has worked with Bruce Springsteen on a number of projects, including the concert films “Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Live in New York City” and “Springsteen on Broadway.” The filmmaker won an Emmy for each, scoring Outstanding Multi-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special for the former and Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special for the latter. “Nebraska Live” marks another collaboration for the two, a black-and-white performance of Springsteen’s iconic album “Nebraska.” This album is also at the center of fellow AFI Fest film, “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere.”
Directed by Etzler, “Bad Apples” is a dark satire following Saoirse Ronan as a school teacher on the brink who inadvertently kidnaps a problem student from her classroom. The German comic thriller, based on Rasmus Lindgren’s novel “De Oönskade,” premiered at TIFF in September.
A number of high-profile directors will screen their latest works at AFI Fest. “Bugonia,” the new collaboration between Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons, was announced as part of the Special Screenings section. Also in that section is Bradley Cooper’s newest directorial effort, “Is This Thing On?” — following Will Arnett as a longtime father and husband who takes up stand-up comedy in the shadow of divorce.
Noah Baumbach’s “Jay Kelly” (premiering Thursday, Oct. 23), which stars George Clooney as an aging movie star and Adam Sandler as his manager, helps round out the Red Carpet Premiere section. James Vanderbilt’s film about the Nuremberg trials (premiering Friday, Oct. 24), based on “The Nazi and the Psychiatrist” by Jack El-Hai, will also screen in the section. Rounding out the new Red Carpet Premiere entries are “Christy,” which stars Sydney Sweeney as acclaimed boxer Christy Martin, and “Dead Man’s Wire,” the first film from Gus Van Sant since 2018. Both films premiere on Saturday, Oct. 25.
AFI Fest, presented by Canva, will run from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26. The full lineup for the festival will be announced on Sept. 30.
Red Carpet Premieres
“Christy,” David Michôd
“Dead Man’s Wire,” Gus Van Sant
“Jay Kelly,” Noah Baumbach
“Nuremberg,” James Vanderbilt
Special Screenings
“Bad Apples,” Jonatan Etzler (U.S. Premiere)
“Bugonia,” Yorgos Lanthimos
“The Choral,” Nicholas Hytner
“The Chronology of Water,” Kristen Stewart
“Is This Thing On?,” Bradley Cooper
“A Magnificent Life,” Sylvian Chomet
“Merrily We Roll Along,” Maria Friedman
“Nebraska Live,” Thom Zimny (World Premiere)
“Rebuilding,” Max Walker-Silverman
“Rental Family,” HIKARI
“The Testament of Ann Lee,” Mona Fastvold
“Train Dreams,” Clint Bentley
