Eisenberg and Moore close London Film Festival with The Debut

Jesse Eisenberg and Julianne Moore closed the 70th BFI London Film Festival on 18 October 2026 with the UK premiere of The Debut at the Royal Festival Hall.

The pair introduced the Sunday night screening onstage to a packed house, Variety reported. The slot was the festival's Closing Night Gala, the final flagship screening staged at the Southbank Centre with linked screenings around the UK, according to the BFI.

The Debut is a musical comedy written and directed by Eisenberg. Moore stars as Mona Friedman, a shy New Jersey housewife who auditions for a local theatre production of a fictional musical called Nosy Neighbors.

Paul Giamatti plays the local production's director, Jerry Blankenbuehler. He missed the London premiere after testing positive for COVID-19.

The ensemble around Moore and Giamatti includes Eisenberg, Halle Bailey, Colton Ryan, Bonnie Milligan, Bernadette Peters, Lilli Cooper, Maulik Pancholy and Havana Rose Liu. It is a stage-heavy cast, with several performers known for Broadway and musical theatre work.

The film had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival last month before travelling to London, Variety reported. Its festival run continues in the United States, where it will open the Miami Film Festival's GEMS event, Variety reported. Distributor A24 plans to release it in cinemas on 11 December.

The BFI had announced The Debut as its closing-night choice on 4 August 2026. Eisenberg also took part in a Screen Talk at the festival at 13:30 on 18 October, linked to the gala screening.

For fans, this means the wait is short. Telluride started the conversation. London closed it out. December brings it to cinemas.