Cavayé's Les Misérables Drops the Songs for Pursuit and Barricades

Jean Valjean does not sing.

Fred Cavayé has directed a new screen version of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables that runs 179 minutes, just short of three hours, and contains no singing. The details, including a reported production budget of $37 million and Netflix as a production partner, come from Variety.

Vincent Lindon stars as Jean Valjean, also listed as M. Madeleine. Tahar Rahim plays Javert. Noémie Merlant joins them in the leading cast.

Ryan Fartout plays the young Jean Valjean. Frédéric Pierrot plays Monseigneur Myriel. Behind the camera, Mickael Dumontier edited the picture and Christophe Julien composed the score.

An original score here means instrumental music written for the film. It does not mean songs performed by the cast. That distinction matters because many viewers know Les Misérables through its famous stage musical.

Cavayé's film stays with Hugo's novel instead. The novel was originally published in 1862, according to Variety. It is a straight adaptation, not a musical.

Studiocanal unveiled an early teaser centred on Rahim. A teaser is a short preview released well ahead of opening. First footage leans on prison cells, sword fights and revolutionary chaos instead of show tunes, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The film is due in French cinemas on 9 December 2026, according to Deadline. That is a theatre-first launch in its home market in France. The date sits inside the busy December corridor, when theatres programme large local titles.

Rahim has likened this telling to The Fugitive, according to Variety. The comparison frames the story as a pursuit. It signals pace and pressure.

At 179 minutes, the running time allows room for Valjean's early life, the alias and the hunt. At $37 million, the reported budget covers the cost of making the film, before marketing and release costs are added. Netflix credited as a production partner means the streamer helped back the production.

For fans, this means a reset. Forget listening for the chorus. Watch for the chase.