A young woman finds her voice through the written word and her salvation as a swimmer – ultimately becoming a triumphant teacher, mother and a singular modern writer.
It was announced in November 2022 that Kristen Stewart was set to make her feature directorial debut with an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch's memoir The Chronology of Water, directing from a screenplay she co-wrote with Andy Mingo, while Imogen Poots was attached to star. Scott Free Productions is financing the project with Ridley Scott, Michael Pruss and Mingo serving as producers, and Scott Aharoni, Sinan Eczacibasi, Metin Alihan Yalcindag and Rebecca Feuer serving as executive producers.[3] In September 2024, it was announced Thora Birch, Earl Cave, Michael Epp, Susannah Flood, Kim Gordon and Jim Belushi had joined the cast of the film.[4]
The Chronology of Water had its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2025, and received a six and a half minute standing ovation.[6][7] In August 2025, The Forge acquired the distribution rights to the film, scheduled to be released in limited theaters in December 2025, before going for a wider release in January 2026.[8]
Reception
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 93% approval rating based on 28 critic reviews.[9] On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the film holds a score of 76/100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[10] M. Sellers Johnson of Off-Screen lauded the film as a highlight of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival writing, "Stewart’s blistering debut will surely prompt divisive discourse on its aggressive art film aesthetics, challenging violent and sexual material, and close lens on the topic of trauma. But for all its experiments and deliberate provocations, the film finds itself grounded in deep, personal meaning."[11]
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