Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein film “Maestro” will have its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival on Oct. 2, the festival announced on Wednesday. The film – which Cooper co-wrote, directed and stars in – is the Spotlight Gala of the 61st NYFF and will screen at David Geffen Hall, following its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival later this month.
A Netflix original film, “Maestro” stars Cooper as the legendary composer and dramatizes his life and, especially, his relationship with his wife Felicia (played by Carey Mulligan).
It is unclear if Cooper or the rest of the cast will be in attendance, as he has already opted to skip the Venice premiere of “Maestro” in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA during the strike. Should the strike conclude before the October date, however, this could be a particularly buzzy screening.
“’Maestro’ is a bravura achievement for its director and star, a work of conviction and imagination that does justice to the brilliance and complexity of its subject,” said Dennis Lim, Artistic Director, New York Film Festival. “We are honored to have Bradley Cooper’s enthralling film as a gala presentation at this year’s festival, and doubly so to be showing it in a venue that is synonymous with Leonard Bernstein.”
A Dolby Vision projection system and a Dolby Atmos sound system will be installed by Dolby and its technical partners in David Geffen Hall specifically for the “Maestro” premiere.
“The New York Film Festival is proud to present the North American debut of ‘Maestro,’ Bradley Cooper’s tour de force film about the life of renowned conductor, composer, and musician Leonard Bernstein,” said Lesli Klainberg, President, Film at Lincoln Center. “It is particularly significant that this is the first film to premiere in the new David Geffen Hall, home of the New York Philharmonic, which Bernstein famously led for over a decade, and where NYFF began in 1963.”
“Maestro” joins a NYFF lineup that includes Todd Haynes’ “May December,” Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla,” Michael Mann’s “Ferrari” and Andrew Haigh’s “All of Us Strangers.”
“Maestro” will be released in select theaters on Nov. 22 before it hits Netflix on Dec. 20.