Chloé Zhao’s ‘Hamnet’ Set For Palm Springs Film Festival’s 2026 Vanguard Award
EXCLUSIVE: The lady won’t protest too much, wethinks. Chloé Zhao’s Oscar-buzzed drama Hamnet is set to receive the Palm Springs Film Festival‘s 2026 Vanguard Award in January.
The fest’s annual prize is a group honor distinguishing a film’s cast and director in recognition of their collective work on an exceptional film project. Director/co-writer Zhao, who won Best Picture and Director Oscars for Nomadland, is expected to attend the January 3 ceremony along with Hamnet stars Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal.
“It is an enormous honor to present this year’s Vanguard Award to Hamnet,” said Festival Chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi. “One of the most resonant films of the year, director Chloé Zhao brings forth a story of enormous weight to the screen. Alongside her direction, the extraordinary performances of Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal establish its human core.”
Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, Hamnet follows impoverished Latin tutor William Shakespeare (Mescal) and free-spirited Agnes (Buckley). Captivated by each other, they strike up a torrid affair that leads to marriage and three children. Yet as Will pursues a budding theater career in faraway London, Agnes anchors the domestic sphere alone. When tragedy strikes, the couple’s once-unshakable bond is tested, but their shared experience sets the stage for the creation of Shakespeare’s masterpiece, Hamlet.
The film had its world premiere at Telluride in September and won the often-predictive People’s Choice Award at TIFF two weeks later. Whether is to be or not to be an Oscar contender seems a fait accompli.
Watch the trailer here:
Past winners of the Vanguard Award include Best Picture winners Green Book and The Shape of Water and nominees Belfast, Emilia Pérez, Killers of the Flower Moon, La La Land, Little Miss Sunshine, The Fablemans, and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
The Palm Springs International Film Festival launched in 1990 in the desert city east of Los Angeles, and its 2026 event runs January 2-11. Its film awards will be handed out January 3 at the Palm Springs Convention Center.
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