Venice [Italy], September 13 (ANI): May El-Toukhy’s ‘Woman Unknown’ has won the Golden Lion for Best Film at the 2026 Venice Film Festival, while John Malkovich took the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Wild Horse Nine’.
Mathilde Arcel, the star of ‘Woman Unknown’, was named Best Actress, as reported by Variety.
The Danish drama, directed by El-Toukhy, follows a young housemaid whose intimate relationship with a German soldier during World War II threatens her future. It was the only film in competition directed solely by a woman.
Accepting the festival’s top prize, El-Toukhy thanked jury president Maggie Gyllenhaal for highlighting the lack of equal opportunities for women filmmakers.
“Thank you to the jury for this great honour – and to you, Maggie, especially for using your voice and shining a light on the lack of equal opportunities for female filmmakers in our industry,” El-Toukhy said, as per Variety.
“This film has been incredibly challenging to make financially, logistically, emotionally. And what kept me going was the urgent need to illuminate the unknown women of our common history, to make them known. And especially tonight, I feel like I succeeded in doing just that.”
Gyllenhaal had addressed the issue earlier in the festival, saying, “There’s a systemic problem. It’s harder for women to get films financed,” as quoted by Variety.
Malkovich received the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his portrayal of an eccentric CIA agent in ‘Wild Horse Nine.’
The 72-year-old actor, who was filming another project in Montreal and could not attend the ceremony, accepted the award via video.
“I am humbled to be chosen for this award, which has been given to so many wonderful actors over the past 83 iterations of the Venice Film Festival,” Malkovich said.
He thanked director Martin McDonagh for “writing this lovely screenplay” and for the role, as well as his co-stars, “most especially my sidekick, the great Sam Rockwell.”
Arcel won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress for ‘Woman Unknown’. The win marked her first lead role in a movie, her first film festival appearance and her first film award.
“This is my first lead role in a movie, and it’s my first time at a film festival and my first time to win a film award,” Arcel said, adding, “So I’m extremely honoured and feel very lucky to get to do that here in Venice with you, people who I think are the most amazing filmmakers and actresses and actors in the world, I’ve looked up to my entire life. I would pinch myself, but if it’s a dream, I really don’t want to wake up.”
Lee Chang-dong’s ‘Possible Love’ won the Grand Jury Prize, the festival’s second-highest competition honour.
The South Korean drama follows two married couples from different social classes who will compete for South Korea in the Oscars international feature race.
“We are living in an era where the meaning of labour is fading, and human connections are increasingly becoming severed,” Lee said through a translator.
“I made this film to ask what cinema can and should do in times like these, and take this award as a sign that you want me to keep asking these questions,” he added, as per Variety.
The Silver Lion for Best Director went to Russian dissident Ilya Khrzhanovsky for ‘DAU’, a three-hour-and-15-minute film he has worked on for two decades.
Khrzhanovsky dedicated the award to “the Ukrainians who are fighting in this terrible war for freedom and peace and victory and belief in them,” as well as his mother, who was “born in Ukraine just before the Nazis arrived.”
The Special Jury Prize went to ‘NAZA,’ a documentary about the conflict in Gaza from ‘No Other Land’ co-directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor.
“It’s honestly not very easy to stand here, thinking of all the Israeli politicians and journalists who are now attacking this film and denying it without even seeing it,” Abraham said, adding, “So much is being done not to look at reality.”
The ceremony also paid tribute to Oscar-winning British producer Jeremy Thomas, who died on Friday aged 77.
Gianluca Farinelli, head of Italy’s Bologna Film Archives and artistic director of the David di Donatello Awards, said, “He loved cinema; cinema made by humans and not by AI. He deeply loved our country. He produced masterpieces, also by great Italian directors.”
Thomas won the Best Picture Oscar for Bernardo Bertolucci’s ‘The Last Emperor’ in 1988. He went on to make five features with the Italian director over 17 years.
Riccardo Scamarcio, who won the Horizons Best Actor prize for ‘The Children of the Monkey,’ also paid tribute, saying, “Jeremy, a great man of cinema. I salute you, my friend!”
The competition jury was led by Gyllenhaal and included “The Voice of Hind Rajab” director Kaouther Ben Hania, Johnnie To, Shahrbanoo Sadat, Xavier Giannoli, ‘The Brutalist’ composer Daniel Blumberg and Italian film academic Francesco Casetti.
Full list of Venice Film Festival 2026 winners:
Competition
Golden Lion for Best Film: ‘Woman Unknown’ to May El-Toukhy
Grand Jury Prize: ‘Possible Love’ to Lee Chang-dong
Silver Lion for Best Director: Ilya Khrzhanovsky for ‘DAU’
Special Jury Prize: ‘NAZA’ to Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor
Best Screenplay: ‘Un Bon Petit Soldat’ (‘A Good Little Soldier’) to Stephane Brize, Coralie Amedeo, Olivier Gorce
Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Mathilde Arcel for ‘Woman Unknown’
Volpi Cup for Best Actor: John Malkovich for ‘Wild Horse Nine’
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor: Malou Khebizi for ’15/18 (A Place to Heal)’
Armani Beauty Audience Award: ‘Eu contez’ (‘I Matter’) to Alina Șerban
Luigi De Laurentiis Award for Debut Film: ‘La maison du vent’ (‘House of the Wind’) to Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu
Horizons
Best Film: ‘Un détour par Diane’ (‘Diane in the Loop’) to Ann Sirot and Raphael Balboni
Best Director: Jaqueline Lentzou for ‘Mia Mera Sti Zoi Tis Tzo: Kefalaio Faidra’ (‘A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra’)
Special Jury Prize: ‘La maison du vent’ (‘House of the Wind’) to Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu
Best Actress: Laleh Marzban for ‘Moragheb’ (‘Falling House’)
Best Actor: Riccardo Scamarcio for ‘I figli della scimmia’ (‘The Children of the Monkey’)
Best Screenplay: Tommaso Landucci and Damiano Femfert for ‘I figli della scimmia’ (‘The Children of the Monkey’)
Best Short Film: ‘Quelques instants de bonheur’ (‘A Few Moments of Happiness’) to Shaden Safieddine Tazi
Venice Classics
Best Restored Film: ‘La lunga notte del ’43′ (‘Long Night of 1943’) to Florestano Vancini
Venice Immersive
Grand Prize: ‘The Pigeon Ring’ to Shixin Tao and Yuqi Zhang
Special Jury Prize: ‘Out of the Ashes’ to Rory Mitchell and Nonny de la Peña
Achievement Prize: ‘Empire at Sea’ to Peter Flaherty
The Venice Film Festival is the oldest and most prestigious film festival in the world, held annually on the Lido di Venezia in Italy. The 83rd edition concluded on September 12, 2026. (ANI)
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