Sundance Double-Winner "Josephine" Drops First Trailer Ahead of November theatrical Release
The first trailer for "Josephine" arrived on 11 August 2026, giving audiences their first look at a psychological thriller that has already pulled off one of the rarest feats in independent film.
"Josephine" won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival — the top two US dramatic prizes handed out at the festival, according to Variety. The last film before it to take both was Siân Heder's "CODA," which went on to win Best Picture at the Oscars. Lee Isaac Chung's "Minari" also sits on that shortlist.
Written and directed by Beth de Araújo, the film is a work of autobiographical fiction rooted in her own lived experiences. Channing Tatum and Gemma Chan star as parents struggling to support their eight-year-old daughter, Josephine, after she accidentally witnesses a horrific crime in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park while out on a run with her father. Newcomer Mason Reeves plays Josephine, a child acting out in search of a way to regain a sense of safety while the adults around her struggle to help.
The film premiered at Sundance on 23 January 2026, then screened in competition at the Berlin International Film Festival. Its festival run continues next at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Sumerian Pictures acquired "Josephine" in a competitive seven-figure deal at Sundance — a seven-figure acquisition meaning the distributor paid more than one million US dollars for the rights. The company has since committed to an awards campaign for the title and will release it in theatres on 20 November.
For context on why those two Sundance prizes matter together: the Grand Jury Prize is decided by a panel of industry jurors, while the Audience Award is voted on by festivalgoers. A film winning both means it impressed critics and crowds alike — a combination that has, in recent years, served as a reliable launchpad into the Oscar race.
Fragrant Nature Film Creations has separately acquired exclusive distribution rights across the Indian subcontinent, per Variety.
De Araújo, Tatum and Chan produce alongside David Kaplan, Josh Peters, Marina Stabile, Mark H. Rapaport and Crystine Zhang. Emanuel Nuñez and Jordan Rapaport serve as executive producers.
The trailer's release lands at a deliberate point on the calendar. A November release slots the film into the autumn corridor that distributors favour for awards contenders — close enough to year-end voting to stay fresh in voters' minds, late enough to build word-of-mouth from the festival circuit. The TIFF screening in September will be the next public milestone before theatrical release.
