This weekend SXSW kicks off its annual festival, and yet again, some of the most exciting movies being screened this year are LGBTQ+ films. Every year the festival boasts a bevy of exciting entries that go on to be some of the best and buzziest films of the year. So what will be this year’s Sing Sing, I Saw the TV Glow, or Cuckoo? We can’t wait to find out, but in the meantime, these 15 are our most anticipated this year.
All film descriptions courtesy of SXSW
Another Simple Favor
Stephanie Smothers and Emily Nelson are back for even more glamour, murder and betrayal as they head to Italy for Emily’s surprise wedding.
Director: Paul Feig
Cast: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Andrew Rannells, Bashir Salahuddin, Elizabeth Perkins, Michele Morrone, Alex Newell, Henry Golding, Allison Janney (World Premiere)
Touch Me
Touch Me is a story about two codependent best friends who become addicted to the heroin-like touch of an alien narcissist who may or may not be trying to take over the world.
Director/Screenwriter: Addison Heimann
Cast: Olivia Taylor Dudley, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jordan Gavaris, Marlene Forte, Paget Brewster, JJ Philips, Yumarie Morales, Ashley Lauren Nedd, Eli Lucas (Texas Premiere)
On Swift Horses
Muriel and her husband Lee are about to begin a bright new life, which is upended by the arrival of Lee's brother. Muriel embarks on a secret life, gambling on racehorses and discovering a love she never thought possible.
Director: Daniel Minahan
Cast: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Jacob Elordi, Will Poulter, Diego Calva, Sasha Calle (U.S. Premiere)
Sally
Sally Ride became the first American woman to blast off into space, but beneath her unflappable composure was a secret. Sally’s life partner, Tam O’Shaughnessy, reveals their hidden romance and the sacrifices that accompanied their 27 years together. (Texas Premiere)
Director/Screenwriter: Cristina Costantini
Holland
In this unpredictable thriller, Nancy is a teacher whose life with her husband in Holland, Michigan, tumbles into a twisted tale when she and her colleague become suspicious of a secret.
Director: Mimi Cave
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Matthew Macfadyen, Jude Hill, Gael García Bernal (World Premiere)
Fucktoys
Join AP on a bubblegum grindhouse adventure through sunny and romantic Trashtown, USA. In this raucous odyssey, a wanton minx quests hard across a dreamy landscape of smut, filth and psychics, hustling to lift a curse that has been f-cking her sh-t up.
Director/Screenwriter: Annapurna Sriram
Cast: Annapurna Sriram, Sadie Scott, Francois Arnaud, Damian Young, Big Freedia, Brandon Flynn, Lorrie Odom, Jowin Batoon, Tamika Lawrence, Arianna Ortiz (World Premiere)
Outerlands
When Cass (they/them) is asked by an alluring woman to watch her 11-year-old daughter while she goes out of town, Cass is forced to confront the truth of their own tumultuous childhood.
Director/Screenwriter: Elena Oxman
Cast: Asia Kate Dillon, Louisa Krause, Ridley Asha Bateman, Lea DeLaria, Daniel K. Isaac, Melinda Meeng, Allie Heng, Winter Dewitt, Safia Fredericks, Sedrick Cabrera (World Premiere)
Clown in a Cornfield
A fading midwestern town in which Frendo the clown, a symbol of bygone success, reemerges as a terrifying scourge.
Director: Eli Craig
Cast: Katie Douglas, Will Sasso, Cassandra Potenza, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Verity Marks, Dylan McEwan, Daina Leitold, Vincent Muller, Kaitlyn Bacon (World Premiere)
Assembly
Visionary artist Rashaad Newsome merges art, AI, and performance to transform a former military facility into a Black queer utopia. Through immersive storytelling and visuals, the film explores how creativity can heal, unite, and spark liberation. (World Premiere)
Directors/Producers/Screenwriters: Rashaad Newsome, Johnny Symons
Idiotka
In West Hollywood’s Russian district, Margarita lives out the American Dream: competing on a reality show. Will she slay, serve, or survive?
Director/Screenwriter: Nastasya Popov
Cast: Anna Baryshnikov, Camila Mendes, Julia Fox, Benito Skinner, Saweetie, Owen Thiele, Galina Jovovich, Mark Ivanir, Nerses Stamos, Ilia Volok (World Premiere)
I Really Love My Husband
When a woman grows disillusioned with her golden-boy husband during their tropical honeymoon, she recruits an enigmatic expat to spice things up—for better or worse.
Director/Screenwriter: GG Hawkins
Cast: Madison Lanesey, Travis Quentin Young, Arta Gee, Lisa Jacqueline Starrett, Elizabeth de Robbins, Armodio Sophia, Meggan Taylor, Mitch Bisschop, Amberlin Morse (World Premiere)
Satisfaction
Set against the Greek isles, British composers Lola and Philip’s relationship lingers in silence as she struggles to reclaim her voice. When she meets magnetic Elena and brings her into the fold, tensions rise, forcing Lola to confront her dark past.
Director/Screenwriter: Alex Burunova
Cast: Emma Laird, Fionn Whitehead, Zar Amir, Adwoa Aboah (World Premiere)
She’s the He
Just before graduation, Alex and Ethan pretend to be trans women to get into the girl’s lockers. It’s all a joke until Ethan realizes: she really is trans. Alex and Ethan must reckon with their changing friendship and the process of coming out.
Director/Screenwriter: Siobhan McCarthy
Cast: Misha Osherovich, Nico Carney, Suzanne Cryer, Mark Indelicato, Malia Pyles, Emmett Preciado, Tatiana Ringsby, Aparna Nancherla, Kyle Butenhoff, Emma Orr (World Premiere)
Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror
A wild journey into the origins of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the biggest cult film of all time, its impact on popular culture and socio-political resonance to this day.
Director: Linus O'Brien
Featuring Richard O'Brien, Tim Curry, Lou Adler, Susan Sarandon, Barry Bostwick (World Premiere)
Trans Memoria
In an exploration of self-discovery, Victoria, Athena and Aamina navigate womanhood through loss and introspection, weaving past regrets and future aspirations in a poetic documentation of embracing true selves. (U.S. Premiere)
Director/Screenwriter: Victoria Verseau