First look at Pedro Pascal's mysterious new thriller as it confirms Cannes premiere

The contemporary Western thriller Eddington, starring Pedro Pascal and Joaquin Phoenix, has been confirmed for a Cannes premiere.

According to Variety, the A24 produced dark comedy will have its world premiere at this year’s Cannes, where it will compete for the prestigious Palme d’Or.

Written, produced and directed by Ari Aster (Hereditary, Midsommar), the film follows a small town sheriff in New Mexico with ambitious dreams.

Though the film has no official logline yet, the plot reportedly focuses on the rivalry between Sheriff Joe Cross (Phoenix) and Mayor Ted Garcia (Pascal) amidst the backdrop of the pandemic.

The first images released from the film show Phoenix and Pascal’s characters in the middle of a heated argument while they stand in the empty streets of their town.

A24

The film also stars Emma Stone, Austin Butler, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward, Clifton Collins Jr. and Luke Grimes – although it’s not been confirmed yet what roles they’ll play.

In March 2024, A24 confirmed the project had started filming, posting a photo of a clapperboard in the middle of a desert to Twitter/X.

It’s not the first time Phoenix and Aster have worked together, with the actor previously starring in the director’s 2023 surreal comedy Beau Is Afraid.

Filmmagic//Getty Images

Meanwhile, Pascal returns for the second season of post-apocalyptic drama The Last of Us, which premieres this Sunday (April 13) – with a third season of the show already confirmed.

Earlier this week, HBO confirmed the new series with a post on social media captioned: “It can’t be for nothing. Season 3 is coming.”

The Last of Us, which is based on the PlayStation game franchise of the same name, will reportedly cover the first half of the The Last of Us Part 2 game in season two of the TV show. The third season is thought to cover the second half of the game (and possibly be the final season).