Kinds of Kindness is a three-part drama directed by Yórgos Lánthimos and presented in official competition at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. The film stars Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, and Hunter Schafer. Jesse Plemons received the Best Actor Award for his performance. The film will be available in France on Disney+ starting November 28, 2025.
Kinds of Kindness is a fable divided into three stories. First, we follow a man under someone else's control who tries to regain control of his life. Then, a police officer whose wife, who had been missing at sea, suddenly returns but seems different. Finally, a woman is tasked with finding a person with a unique power, destined to become a spiritual guide. Three variations on power, dependence, and the need for belief.
The film marks Yórgos Lánthimos's return to Cannes, following Dogtooth (Un Certain Regard Award 2009), The Lobster (Jury Prize 2015), and The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Best Screenplay Award 2017). He is reunited here with his long-time co-writer Efthimis Filippou. The reuse of the same group of actors in three separate stories creates an underlying continuity and allows for different interpretations.
The cast includes Emma Stone (her fourth collaboration with the filmmaker after The Favourite and Poor Creatures), Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Joe Alwyn, and Hunter Schafer. The usual troupe allows the director to explore the same themes in different contexts.
Filming took place in New Orleans, with a return to natural settings and film stock to preserve the visual texture so dear to the director. Costume designer Jennifer Johnson and director of photography Robbie Ryan continue the style already established in The Lobster, with a more realistic approach here, sometimes tinged with black and white when the characters evoke memories or inner narratives.
The three-part structure reflects Lánthimos and Filippou's initial desire to link several stories with a common theme. The same actors change roles from one segment to another (Jesse Plemons plays Robert, Daniel, and then Andrew; Hong Chau plays three female characters), giving the viewer a sense of continuity despite the narrative break.
Presented in competition at Cannes 2024, the film earned Jesse Plemons the Best Actor Award, adding another trophy to the director's collection on the Croisette. This feature film continues the filmmaker's obsession with control, relationships, obedience, and the quiet violence that runs through human relationships.
Kinds of Kindness
Film | 2024
On Disney+ November 28, 2025
Drama | Running time: 2 hours 44 minutes
By Yórgos Lánthimos | Starring Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau
Nationality: Greece, Ireland, United Kingdom, United States
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