Danish filmmaker May el-Toukhy’s post-war drama “Woman Unknown” won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday, with its star Mathilde Arcel also taking best actress honours in a rare double victory.
The documentary received a record 25-minute standing ovation at its premiere on Thursday (September 10, 2026) — the second year in succession that a film about Gaza has resonated in Venice after “The Voice of Hind Rajab”, a true-life account of the killing of a Palestinian girl during the war.
El-Toukhy was the only woman directing a feature film in the main, 21-strong movie line-up, a disparity that drew criticism during the festival and prompted renewed scrutiny of the barriers facing women in cinema. Ms. Festival director Alberto Barbera has defended the male-dominated line-up this year, insisting that selection decisions were based on artistic merit rather than quotas, and urging the industry to do more to help women break into the business.
South Korean auteur Lee Chang-dong took the runner-up Silver Lion award for “Promised Love”, while Russian-born filmmaker Ilya Khrzhanovsky won best director for “DAU”, a hugely ambitious project shot largely in Ukraine before the ongoing war that has attracted intense scrutiny and controversy. John Malkovich appears on screen to accept the Coppa Volpi for best actor for the film ‘Wild Horse Nine’ during the closing ceremony of the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival. | Photo Credit: AP John Malkovich won the best actor award for his role as an ageing, maverick CIA agent in Martin McDonagh’s razor-sharp comedy “Wild Horse Nine”. Stephane Brize, Coralie Amedeo and Olivier Gorce received the screenplay award for their well-received French workplace drama “A Good Little Soldier”, while Malou Khebizi was named as best emerging young actor for her role in another well-received French production — “A Place To Heal”.
