Legacy is at the forefront of the Sundance Film Festival’s 2026 edition, which takes place Jan. 22–Feb. 1, and with good reason: This marks the event’s final year in Park City, Utah, the mountain town that has been its home for 44 years. It’s also the first Sundance following the death of founder Robert Redford in September 2025.
Among the many tributes, organizers will screen “Downhill Racer,” Michael Ritchie’s 1969 sports drama starring Redford. The festival will also celebrate its rich heritage with screenings of other Park City legacy films, including Reginald Hudlin’s 1990 comedy “House Party,” Guillermo del Toro’s 1994 horror “Cronos,” and Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris’ 2006 coming-of-age drama “Little Miss Sunshine.”
In a nod to its Park City roots, the opening night lineup includes Utah documentarian Abby Ellis’ “The Lake,” which follows two scientists and a politician fighting to save their home from a looming environmental threat. Ellis uses her platform to spotlight growing ecological concerns as Utah’s Great Salt Lake continues to dry up.
Political themes run throughout this year’s selections, continuing Sundance’s tradition of unflinching social commentary. Poh Si Teng’s documentary “American Doctor” follows three doctors—Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian—working together to save lives in a hospital in Gaza. Felipe Bustos Sierra’s documentary “Everybody to Kenmure Street” chronicles an entire neighborhood banding together to protect residents from deportation by the U.K. government. And Andrius Blaževičius’ drama “How to Divorce During the War” depicts a Lithuanian couple navigating their divorce just as Russia invades Ukraine.
“It’s vital for [Sundance] to be able to offer a platform where people can discuss the issues of the day in a safe and respectful environment,” says Heidi Zwicker, senior programmer for Sundance. “All of the films in our lineup have the opportunity to do that. It’s an important part of what we do.”
As artificial intelligence continues to dominate cultural conversations, Sundance features two documentaries offering contrasting perspectives on the technology. Valerie Veatch’s “Ghost in the Machine” contextualizes AI within the broader history of technology shaping human experience, while Daniel Roher and Charlie Tyrell’s “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist” explores both AI’s existential dangers and its promises.
Zwicker recommends seeing both films: “It’s such a multifaceted conversation. One [film] wasn’t enough.”
The comedy slate has generated considerable buzz. “The Invite,” directed by Olivia Wilde and starring Wilde, Penélope Cruz, Edward Norton, and Seth Rogen, transforms an unassuming dinner party into hilarious chaos when upstairs neighbors join a couple for the evening. Macon Blair’s dark comedy “The Shitheads” follows two hapless guys (Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr.) tasked with bringing a juvenile offender (Mason Thames) to rehab, until things spiral wildly out of control.
Sundance always attracts big names in Hollywood, and this year is no different. After a wildly successful worldwide tour cementing her global influence, British artist Charli XCX appears in three festival films this year: Aidan Zamiri’s “The Moment,” a mockumentary about Charli preparing for her arena tour; Gregg Araki’s “I Want Your Sex,” an erotic thriller about an artist (Olivia Wilde) and her muse (Cooper Hoffman); and Cathy Yan’s “The Gallerist,” a social satire about the contemporary art world with an ensemble including Sterling K. Brown, Zach Galifianakis, Jenna Ortega, Natalie Portman, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Other notable selections include Casper Kelly’s “Buddy,” a fantastical experimental horror film about kids trying to escape a television show, featuring Topher Grace, Keegan-Michael Key, Cristin Milioti, Patton Oswalt, and Michael Shannon; and Beth de Araújo’s “Josephine,” a drama about a young girl (Mason Reeves) struggling after she witnesses a crime, and the ways her parents (Gemma Chan and Channing Tatum) provide support.
Amid this star power, Zwicker is still the most excited about showcasing debut and early career filmmakers like Sundance Collab alum Giselle Bonilla, whose feature film debut “The Musical”—a twisted comedy about a brokenhearted middle school teacher (Will Brill) taking revenge against those who have wronged him (Gillian Jacobs and Rob Lowe) in the form of an obscene musical—premieres at this year’s festival.
“Giselle has such a cool, twisted sensibility as a filmmaker,” says Zwicker. “That’s the coolest part of going to a festival: discovering a talent who is literally at the beginning of their career and then being able to follow them the whole way through.”
It’s that commitment to launching new voices that has defined Sundance for over four decades—and will continue defining it, wherever the festival lands next.
The 2026 Sundance Film Festival runs Jan. 22–Feb. 1 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, with online programming Jan. 29–Feb. 1.
