The Plague (2025 film)

Last updated
The Plague
The Plague (2025 film)-69088.jpg
Cast and crew of the film at the Cannes Film Festival 2025
Directed byCharlie Polinger
Written byCharlie Polinger
Produced by
Starring
CinematographySteven Breckon
Edited by
  • Simon Njoo ASE
  • Henry Hayes
Music by Johan Lenox
Production
companies
Distributed by Independent Film Company
Release dates
  • May 16, 2025 (2025-05-16)(Cannes)
  • December 24, 2025 (2025-12-24)(United States)
Running time
95 minutes [1]
Countries
  • United States
  • Romania
LanguageEnglish

The Plague is a 2025 psychological drama [2] -thriller film [3] [4] written and directed by Charlie Polinger, in his directorial debut. It stars Joel Edgerton, Everett Blunck, Kayo Martin, Lucas Adler and Kenny Rasmussen.

Contents

The film had its world premiere at the Un Certain Regard section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2025 and is scheduled to be given a limited theatrical release in the United States on December 24, 2025, expanding nationwide on January 2, 2026.

Premise

A socially anxious 12-year-old boy is pulled into a cruel tradition at an all-boys water polo camp. [5]

Cast

Production

Initially, when Joel Edgerton received the script by Charlie Polinger, he wanted to direct the film, however Polinger wanted to, with Edgerton instead offering to help getting it made. [7] Polinger set out to "capture a social dread and vulnerability of your body and something you don’t see as much with boys because it requires a certain vulnerability to be an object of terror in that way." And cites The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, and Beau Travail as primary sources of inspiration. [8]

The film was shot on 35mm in Bucharest, Romania. [9] [10]

Release

It had its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2025, in the Un Certain Regard section. [11] In August 2025, Independent Film Company acquired North American distribution rights to the film, scheduling it for a theatrical release in the United States on December 24, 2025, before expanding nationwide on January 2, 2026. [12]

In addition to Cannes, the film played the Sydney Film Festival, [13] Deauville American Film Festival, [14] Fantastic Fest, [15] Mill Valley Film Festival, [16] Independent Film Festival Boston, [17] Hamptons International Film Festival, [18] Leiden International Film Festival, [19] Vancouver International Film Festival, [20] Sitges Film Festival, [21] New Hampshire Film Festival, [22] Orcas Island Film Festival, [23] Philadelphia Film Festival, [24] Woodstock Film Festival, [25] Montclair Film Festival, [26] Heartland International Film Festival, [27] , Chicago International Film Festival, [28] Virginia Film Festival, [29] AFI Fest, [30] SCAD Savannah Film Festival, [31] Miami Film Festival, [32] and St. Louis International Film Festival. [33]

Reception

Critical response

The film was met with critical acclaim [34] and a warm reception at Cannes. [34] It received an eleven minute standing ovation and was highlighted as a favorite by the pop star Charli XCX. [35] and was described as "perhaps the hottest American film at the festival." [36]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 100% of 16 critics' reviews are positive. [37]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipientResultRef.
Cannes Film Festival 24 May 2025 Un Certain Regard Award Charlie PolingerNominated [38]
Camera d'Or Nominated
Best Sound Creation AwardThe PlagueWon [39]
Deauville American Film Festival 13 September 2025Grand PrizeWon [40]
Critics PrizeWon
Fantastic Fest 23 September 2025Best Picture (Main Competition)Won [41]
Calgary International Film Festival 23 September 2025Grand Jury PrizeWon [42]
Orcas Island Film Festival1 October 2025Jean-Marc Vallée Vanguard AwardCharlie PolingerWon [43]
Denver Film Festival 16 October 2025Breakthrough Director PrizeWon [44]
Sitges Film Festival 18 October 2025 Best Feature FilmThe PlagueNominated [45]
Best ActorEverett Blunck, Kayo Martin, Kenny Rasmussen, Joel Edgerton, Lucas Adler, Caden Burris, Lennox Espy, Elliott Heffernan, Kolton LeeWon
Woodstock Film Festival 18 October 2025Best Feature, NarrativeThe PlagueWon [46]
Best CinematographySteven BreckonNominated
Best Editing, NarrativeSimon NjooWon

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Plague". Cannes Film Festival . 16 May 2025. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  2. ↑ "'The Plague' Review: Joel Edgerton & Cast of Young Newcomers Turn Summer Boys Camp into a Psychological Nightmare – Cannes Film Festival". 16 May 2025.
  3. ↑ "Independent Company Buys Joel Edgerton Psychological Thriller (EXCLUSIVE)".
  4. ↑ "'The Plague' Review: Joel Edgerton in a Thrilling Drama That Captures the Terror of Adolescent Masculinity". The Hollywood Reporter . 16 May 2025.
  5. ↑ Barraclough, Leo (April 22, 2025). "Charlie Polinger's 'The Plague,' Starring Joel Edgerton, Boarded by AGC, Cinetic and UTA Independent Film Group Ahead of Cannes Premiere (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  6. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32792934/
  7. ↑ Lattanzio, Ryan (May 15, 2025). "Cannes Premiere 'The Plague' Twists the Pock-Marked Perils of Adolescence Into Body Horror — with Joel Edgerton". IndieWire . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  8. ↑ Lattanzio, Ryan (2025-05-15). "Cannes Premiere 'The Plague' Twists the Pock-Marked Perils of Adolescence Into Body Horror — with Joel Edgerton". IndieWire. Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  9. ↑ Afcinema (2025-10-17). "Interview with Steven Breckon about "The Plague", by Charlie Polinger". Afcinema. Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  10. ↑ Lang, Brent (2025-05-17). "Meet The Space Program, the Producing Collective Behind Buzzy Cannes Film 'The Plague': 'For Indie Movies, It's Not One Size Fits All'". Variety. Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  11. ↑ Ntim, Zac (April 10, 2025). "Cannes Competition: Aster, Trier, Dardennes, Reichardt, Ducournau & Wes Anderson Among Lineup — Full List". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  12. ↑ Lang, Brent (August 7, 2025). "Independent Film Company Buys Joel Edgerton Psychological Thriller 'The Plague'". Variety . Retrieved August 7, 2025.
  13. ↑ https://au.variety.com/2025/film/news/sydney-film-festival-new-film-2025-line-up-23256/
  14. ↑ https://variety.com/2025/film/global/deauville-festival-2025-winners-1236517543/
  15. ↑ https://www.indiewire.com/news/festivals/fantastic-fest-2025-awards-1235152531/
  16. ↑ https://awardswatch.com/48th-mill-valley-film-festival-lineup-cannes-winners-hamnet-rental-family-spike-lee-joel-edgerton-zoey-deutch-to-receive-honors/
  17. ↑ https://iffboston.org/series/fall-focus-2025
  18. ↑ https://hamptons.com/2025-hamptons-international-film-festival-guide/
  19. ↑ https://www.liff.nl/en/movies-a-z/?schedule_date=all&section=American+Indie+Competition
  20. ↑ https://viff.org/whats-on/viff25-the-plague/
  21. ↑ https://sitgesfilmfestival.com/en/films/2025
  22. ↑ https://viff.org/whats-on/viff25-the-plague/
  23. ↑ https://thesunbreak.com/2025/09/23/orcas-island-film-festival-2025-lineup/
  24. ↑ https://filmadelphia.org/movies/the-plague/
  25. ↑ https://variety.com/2025/film/news/woodstock-film-festival-2025-lineup-1236521099/
  26. ↑ https://montclairfilm.org/festival/2025/
  27. ↑ https://heartlandfilm.prowly.com/419829-34th-heartland-international-film-festival-to-feature-oscar-winning-actors-with-hoosier-ties-brendan-fraser-in-rental-family-to-open-and-rami-malek-in-nuremberg-to-close?preview=true
  28. ↑ https://www.chicagofilmfestival.com/event/theplague/
  29. ↑ https://virginiafilmfestival.org/2025/09/23/virginia-film-festival-announces-2025-lineup/
  30. ↑ https://www.indiewire.com/news/festivals/afi-fest-2025-full-lineup-best-movies-1235153613/
  31. ↑ https://filmfest.scad.edu/schedule/plague
  32. ↑ https://miamifilmfestival.com/program/event/the-plague/
  33. ↑ https://festivals.cinemastlouis.org/sliff2025/movies/the-plague/
  34. 1 2 "The Plague (2025) | Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com.
  35. ↑ Gardner, Chris (May 16, 2025). "Charli XCX Extends Brat Summer in Cannes With Magnum Party and Palais Premiere of 'The Plague'". The Hollywood Reporter .
  36. ↑ "The buzziest films at Cannes so far — and one already causing arguments". The Washington Post. 2025-05-18. Archived from the original on 2025-05-19. Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  37. ↑ "The Plague". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved October 1, 2025.
  38. ↑ "The films of the Official Selection 2025". Festival de Cannes. 10 April 2025. Retrieved 10 April 2025.
  39. ↑ Porter, Kimberly (2025-06-02). "'The Plague' by Charlie Polinger Triumphs at Cannes: Best Sound Creation Award 2025". culturedfocusmag. Retrieved 2025-10-20.
  40. ↑ Keslassy, Elsa (2025-09-13). "Deauville Festival 2025 Winners: Joel Edgerton Thriller 'The Plague,' Plan B-Produced 'Olmo' and Kristen Stewart's 'Chronology of Water' Take Top Awards". Variety. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  41. ↑ Blauvelt, Christian (2025-09-23). "Fantastic Fest 2025 Awards: 'The Plague,' 'CAMP,' and 'The Vile' Win Top Prizes". IndieWire. Retrieved 2025-10-12.
  42. ↑ Toombs, Aryn (2025-09-24). "Calgary International Film Festival awards winning films with jury prizes". LiveWire Calgary. Retrieved 2025-10-12.
  43. ↑ "Orcas Island Film Festival unveils 2025 lineup: 41 films from 35 countries, 12 Oscar submissions and Global Festival winners". Islands' Sounder. 2025-10-01. Retrieved 2025-10-12.
  44. ↑ Gardner, Chris (2025-10-16). "Denver Film Fest to Honor Zoey Deutch, Ben Foster and Screen Robert Redford and Diane Keaton Films". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2025-10-16.
  45. ↑ "'La hermanastra fea' d'Emilie Blichfeldt, Premi a la Millor Pel·lícula a Sitges 2025 | Sitges Film Festival". sitgesfilmfestival.com (in Catalan). Retrieved 2025-10-18.
  46. ↑ "Woodstock Film Festival celebrates activism, movies at Maverick Awards Ceremony". Daily Freeman. 2025-10-19. Retrieved 2025-10-20.
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