Belgium Sends Lukas Dhont's Cannes Winner 'Coward' to the Oscars

Belgium has selected Lukas Dhont's "Coward" as its submission for the international feature film category at the 99th Academy Awards, according to Variety.

The film arrives with serious festival pedigree. "Coward" premiered in the main Competition at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where its two leads, Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne, shared the Best Actor award — the festival's top acting honour, confirmed by the Cannes official site and The Match Factory.

This is the third time Belgium has put forward a Dhont film in the Oscar race, and the director's track record in the category has improved with each attempt. His 2018 debut, "Girl" — which won the Caméra d'Or for best first feature and the Queer Palm at Cannes — was Belgium's submission but did not make the final nomination cut. His 2022 film, "Close," went further: it won the Cannes Grand Prix and earned an Oscar nomination for best international feature, ultimately losing to "All Quiet on the Western Front" (Variety).

"Coward" also marks a shift in setting for Dhont. It is his first period film, per Cineuropa. The story unfolds on the Belgian front during World War I, following Pierre, a young soldier who arrives in 1916, and Francis, a man who stages theatrical performances behind the lines. Dhont co-wrote the screenplay with his frequent collaborator Angelo Tijssens, and Frank Van den Eeden served as cinematographer (Variety).

The film's path to audiences is already mapped out. After its Cannes premiere, the distribution company Mubi acquired "Coward" for major territories including the U.S., the U.K., Spain, Italy and Latin America. The Match Factory is handling international sales. Michiel Dhont produced the film through The Reunion, in co-production with Versus (Belgium), Lumen (France) and Topkapi Films (Netherlands) (Variety).

Festival audiences will have several chances to see it before its theatrical run. "Coward" is scheduled for screenings at Toronto, San Sebastian and the BFI London Film Festival. Diaphana will release the film in France on 18 November, while Mubi plans a December release in North America (Variety).

For Belgium, the strategy is clear: send the strongest festival-tested title, give it a autumn platform across the major European and North American festivals, and let voters see it on the big screen before ballots go out.