Pedro Pascal played a cellist in the new film from the creator of Andora

World premiere of the drama “Behemoth!” Tony Gilroy with Pedro Pascal in the title role will be held on October 2 at the New York Film Festival — the film was chosen as the central film of the program, and in December it will be shown in cinemas.

The main thing about the premiere

The organizers of the 64th New York Film Festival have announced that the central screening of the program will be “Hippopotamus!” — new directorial work by Tony Gilroy. The screening will take place in New York's Alice Tully Hall, where the director himself, Pedro Pascal and other actors from the film are expected to attend. The festival will run from September 25 to October 12 and is produced by Film at Lincoln Center and supported by Rolex.

The status of a “central film” at NYFF is not just a nice wording. In the festival program, one film is marked as such, which, in the opinion of the selectors, most accurately reflects the level and ambitions of the film year. For comparison, this year's festival will open with James Gray's Paper Tiger — and Hippopotamus! received a more status slot in the middle of the program.

What is the movie about

Pascal plays cellist Alex Serian, a former child prodigy from a famous musical family. After twenty years of touring life, the hero leaves the Chicago orchestra — after breaking up with his ex-girlfriend (played by Olivia Wilde) — and returns to Los Angeles to write music for Hollywood films, while also dealing with family matters. According to foreign publications, the plot is constructed nonlinearly: musical themes that sound in the frame trigger flashbacks that explain why the hero left and why he returned.

The cast also includes Eva Victor, Alexa Swinton, Kaya Rolls, Eric Griffin, JoBeth Williams, Margarita Levieva, Hank Azaria and Will Arnett. An interesting detail for those who follow the casting: David Harbor was initially cast in the role of Arnett, but the actor was replaced during filming — and the production schedule did not move.

Why is it Gilroy, and not just a director

For Russian viewers, the name Tony Gilroy may be familiar not from the credits, but from streaming services: he is the showrunner of the series Andor, a spin-off of Rogue One, which is consistently called one of the best projects in the Star Wars universe in recent years for its adult, non-childish tone. Gilroy previously wrote the screenplays for the first three Jason Bourne films and directed Michael Clayton with George Clooney, which earned him Oscar nominations for directing and writing.

By Gilroy's own admission, «Behemoth!» — the story is largely personal: in his youth he was seriously involved in music, and working on musical scenes, according to him, still remains “the happiest place” for him. Hence the unusual technique: the entire film is built around musical fragments that trigger the hero’s memories.

What does this mean for rentals

“Hippopotamus!” is produced by Searchlight Pictures, the same studio that was behind The Lost and Lost and other Oscar winners in recent years. The film will be released in December, right in the midst of the predicted race for prestigious awards, and some Western observers have already included the film in the list of potential nominees for the season — not least because of the participation of Pascal, whose recognition after The Last of Us and The Mandalorian continues to grow outside the United States.

Gilroy himself admitted that he treats the invitation to NYFF almost sentimentally: according to him, he has been “revolving around” this festival most of his life, and the first film show he attended was a screening of Werner Herzog’s “Fitzcarraldo,” for which a random visitor once gave him a ticket bar, where he then worked part-time. Festival artistic director Dennis Lim singled out Pascal's performance in a statement, calling it one of the best performances of the year.

Sources:

1. Variety — https://variety.com/2026/film/markets-festivals/tony-gilroy-pedro-pascal-behemoth-nyff-centerpiece-1236822730/
2. The Hollywood Reporter — https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/tony-gilroy-pedro-pascal-behemoth-ny-film-fest-premiere-1236658091/
3. Deadline — https://deadline.com/2026/07/behemoth-trailer-pedro-pascal-release-date-december-1236981742/

Xrust Pedro Pascal played a cellist in the new film from the creator of “Andora”