Apr 14, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 14, 2022 – Serendipity Point Films and Sphere Films (formerly MK2 |MILE END) today confirmed David Cronenberg’s highly anticipated Crimes of the Future will have its world premiere in the Official Competition at the Festival de Cannes in May. The film, which stars Viggo Mortensen (A History of Violence, Eastern Promises, Green Book), Léa Seydoux (No Time to Die, The French Dispatch, Blue is the Warmest Colour), Kristen Stewart (Spencer, Seberg, Clouds of Sils Maria, Twilight), and Scott Speedman (Citizen Gangster, Barney’s Version, Adoration) will open in theatres across Canada and the U.S. in June.

Crimes of the Future is written and directed by David Cronenberg (A History of Violence, Eastern Promises, Crash) and produced by Robert Lantos (Eastern Promises, Barney’s Version, Sunshine). This is the sixth time that a David Cronenberg film has been selected to compete in Cannes. His films have previously won a Special Jury Award (Crash) and Best Actress Award (Maps to the Stars). ​This is also the 10th time that a film produced by Robert Lantos is in the Official Cannes Selection. Previously, his films have won the Jury Grand Prize and the International Critics Prize (The Sweet Hereafter) and a Special Jury Prize (Crash). Crimes of the Future also reunites Cronenberg with Mortensen, a three-time Oscar nominee. Shot on location in Athens in the summer of 2021, the film also stars  Welket Bungué (Berlin Alexanderplatz), Don McKellar (Blindness, eXistenZ), Tanaya Beatty (Yellowstone, Through Black Spruce), Nadia Litz (Blindness), and Lihi Kornowski (Losing Alice). 

As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice (Léa Seydoux), Saul Tenser (Viggo Mortensen), celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances. Timlin (Kristen Stewart), an investigator from the National Organ Registry, obsessively tracks their movements, which is when a mysterious group is revealed… Their mission – to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution.

“It’s a thrill to return to Cannes for the premiere of Crimes of the Future, a film that grapples with universal questions, concerns, and fears about our bodies, evolution, and what some would deem the threat that technology poses to our humanity,” said David Cronenberg. “I believe this is a film of our times and I look forward to its unveiling in one of the most prestigious theatres in the world.” 

“Crash was the last time David and I were in competition together in Cannes. That film electrified the Croisette, causing shockwaves around the world, and 25 years later, has become a cult classic,” said Robert Lantos. “I look forward to an encore.”

“We are thrilled for David and we share in the excitement of today’s announcement,” said Charles Tremblay, President of Sphere Films (formerly MK2 | MILE END). “Crimes of the Future is a spectacular film and we’re excited to bring it to Canadian audiences this June.”

Crimes of the Future is the fourth collaboration between Lantos and Cronenberg. Steve Solomos (Possessor) is Producer, and Panos Papahadzis (Knifer, Stratus) is Producer for Athens-based Argonauts Productions. Executive Producers include Charles Tremblay and Ariane Giroux-Dallaire, Joe Iacono, Thorsten Schumacher, Peter Touche, Christelle Conan, Tom Quinn, Jeff Deutchman, Christian Parkes, Aida Tannyan, Victor Loewy, and Victor Hadida. Laura Lanktree is a Co-Producer and Bonnie Do is an associate producer.

Crimes of the Future is a Serendipity Point Films and Argonauts co-production. This Canada-Hellenic Republic Co-Production is produced in association with Telefilm Canada, Ingenious Media, Bell Media, CBC, ERT S.A., Greek Film Centre, Ontario Creates, Coficiné, the Harold Greenberg Fund, with the support of EKOME.

About SERENDIPITY POINT FILMS

Toronto-based Serendipity Point Films produces theatrical feature films. Its credits include: François Girard’s The Song Of Names, winner of five Canadian Screen Awards, starring Tim Roth and Clive Owen; Alonso Ruizpalacios’ MUSEO, a Berlin Festival Silver Bear Award winner, starring Gael García Bernal; Atom Egoyan’s Remember, a Venice Audience Award winner, starring Christopher Plummer; Richard J. Lewis’ Barney’s Version, an Oscar Nominee and Golden Globe Winner, starring Dustin Hoffman, Rosamund Pike, and Paul Giamatti; Atom Egoyan’s Adoration, a Cannes Award winner, starring Scott Speedman and Rachel Blanchard; Jeremy Podeswa’s Fugitive Pieces, a Rome Festival winner, starring Stephen Dillane, Rosamund Pike, Ayelet Zurer, and Rade Serbedzija; David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises, an Oscar nominee, starring Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts and Vincent Cassel; Atom Egoyan’s Where The Truth Lies, a Canadian Screen Award winner, starring Colin Firth, Kevin Bacon, and Alison Lohman; István Szabó’s Being Julia, an Oscar nominee and Golden Globe winner, starring Annette Bening and Jeremy Irons; Norman Jewison’s The Statement, a National Board of Review Special Award winner, starring Michael Caine and Tilda Swinton; Atom Egoyan’s Ararat, a Cannes official selection, starring Christopher Plummer and Arsinée Khanjian; Denys Arcand’s Stardom, a Cannes official selection, starring Jessica Paré, Dan Aykroyd, and Frank Langella; István Szabó’s Sunshine, a Golden Globe Nominee and European Film Award winner, starring Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, William Hurt and Molly Parker; Atom Egoyan’s Felicia’s Journey, a Cannes official selection, starring Bob Hoskins and Elaine Cassidy; David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, a Berlin Festival Silver Bear Award winner, starring Jude Law, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Willem Dafoe; Atom Egoyan’s The Sweet Hereafter, a Cannes Grand Prix winner and Oscar nominee, starring Ian Holm and Sarah Polley; David Cronenberg’s Crash, a Cannes Jury Prize Award winner, starring James Spader, Holly Hunter, Deborah Kara Unger, and Elias Koteas; and Robert Longo’s Johnny Mnemonic, starring Keanu Reeves. For more information, please visit, www.serendipitypoint.com.

About SPHERE FILMS (FORMERLY MK2 | MILE END)

One of Canada’s foremost creators, producers and distributors, Sphere Films serves both the local and international markets with premium content across all genres. With offices in Montreal and Toronto, Sphere Films delivers the best of Canadian and international cinema, including the Academy Award-winner for Best Picture, Bong Joon-Ho's Parasite. Other recent releases include the critically acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Academy award-nominated The Worst Person in the World and Honeyland, the Quebecois produced And the Birds Rained Down and Maria Chapdelaine. Upcoming releases include Official Competition starring Penélope Cruz and Antonio Banderas, Crimes of the Future by David Cronenberg starring Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Stewart and Léa Seydoux and Call Jane by Phyllis Nagy starring Sigourney Weaver and Elizabeth Banks.