Three Oscar nominees and one of world cinema's most celebrated directors are joining forces on a new film adaptation of a play that has confounded and delighted audiences for more than 30 years.
Ralph Fiennes, Colin Farrell, and Wagner Moura are set to star in Art, an English-language adaptation of French playwright Yasmina Reza's internationally beloved comedy about male friendship, intellectual vanity, and one absurdly expensive white canvas. Fernando Meirelles, the Oscar-nominated Brazilian filmmaker behind City of God and The Two Popes, will direct. The project was announced as it heads into the Cannes market, where Patrick Wachsberger's 193, backed by Legendary, is launching sales.
The script comes from Christopher Hampton, a two-time Oscar winner who adapted Dangerous Liaisons and The Father. This marks something of a homecoming for Hampton — he translated Reza's original French text into English more than 30 years ago, when the play opened in the West End in 1996 starring Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay, and Ken Stott.
The story centers on three longtime friends: Serge, Marc, and Yvan. When Serge pays an enormous sum for a large, almost entirely white painting — white canvas, slightly-less-white lines — Marc is appalled. Their clash over what constitutes art opens up a fault line of long-suppressed resentment, while Yvan, trying to smooth things over, only makes matters worse. Reza's play, which premiered in Paris in 1994, has since become one of the most widely staged works of contemporary theatre, appearing on Broadway, in the West End, in Sydney, and in dozens of countries.
The most recent Broadway revival, in 2025, featured Bobby Cannavale, James Corden, and Neil Patrick Harris. According to Deadline, conversations about a film version have circulated for years before this team finally came together.
The casting draws on a network of existing creative relationships. Meirelles and Fiennes previously collaborated on The Constant Gardener, which won Fiennes significant awards attention. Meirelles and Farrell worked together on the Apple TV+ series Sugar. The director has also produced multiple projects with Moura, including the Brazilian film VIPs.
Fiennes received his most recent Oscar nomination for Conclave. Farrell was nominated for The Banshees of Inisherin. Moura earned a nomination this year for The Secret Agent.
The film is being produced by Charles Finch, a producer on Priscilla, and Tracy Seaward, whose credits include The Queen and Philomena. CAA Media Finance is handling domestic rights.
193 has been busy at Cannes this cycle. The company also recently boarded The Brigands of Rattlecreek, a western thriller from South Korean director Park Chan-wook, written by S. Craig Zahler and starring Matthew McConaughey, Austin Butler, Pedro Pascal, and Tang Wei.
No release date or distributor has been announced for Art.
