This year’s festival will run from the 8th to the 19th October.
The 69th BFI London Film Festival has announced that this year’s Opening Night Gala will be the anticipated International Premiere of the Netflix Film Wake Up Dead Man – A Knives Out Mystery, directed by director Rian Johnson at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall.
This new instalment in the film series sees Daniel Craig reprising his role of famed private detective Benoit Blanc for his most dangerous case yet. While exact plot details have yet to be uncovered, the ensemble cast is set to include: Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church.
The international premiere of Wake Up Dead Man, marks a return to the BFI London Film Festival with Rian Johnson’s previous films in the series Glass Onion and Knives Out having both formed part of the 2023 and 2019 festival programmes.
Talking about the news, Director/Writer /Producer Rian Johnson, said: “We’re honoured to be opening the BFI London Film Festival with Wake Up Dead Man. London is the birthplace of the golden age of detective fiction and it’s a thrill to be back!”
Wake Up Dead Man will be released via Netflix on the 12th December.
Kristy Matheson, BFI London Film Festival Director, said: “At this 69th edition of the BFI London Film Festival we are inviting audiences to get their spyglass at the ready as we get back on the case with another deliciously fun mystery from director Rian Johnson and his all-star cast with Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. Led by Daniel Craig and Josh O’Connor, the film features incredible British and international talent on and off screen who bring a sense of play and verve to the screen, to craft a film that twists, turns and will keep audiences guessing to the final frame. The third of the brilliant Knives Out films we have presented at the LFF, we are delighted to reunite for our special Opening Night.”
The 69th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express will take place in the following venues: Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, BFI Southbank, BFI IMAX, Marie Rambert Studio, Rambert, BFI IMAX and BFI Southbank. Meanwhile five partner cinemas in London’s West End include Curzon Mayfair, Curzon Soho, Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), Prince Charles Cinema and Vue West End.
Festival venues across the UK include: Broadway Cinema in Nottingham, Chapter in Cardiff, Glasgow Film Theatre, HOME in Manchester, MAC in Birmingham, Queen’s Film Theatre in Belfast, Showroom Cinema in Sheffield, Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle, National Science and Media Museum in Bradford, Filmhouse in Edinburgh and Watershed in Bristol.
In addition to UK-wide screenings at the Festival venues, audiences will also be able to explore LFF programmes past and present with a special collection of films on BFI Player.
The full festival programme will be revealed on Wednesday 3 September 2025, with tickets on sale from 16 September (BFI Members book early).
To find out more visit: https://www.bfi.org.uk/bfi-festivals