Julia Roberts dazzles in Venice debut with #MeToo drama After the Hunt

Julia Roberts is making her Venice Film Festival debut with the drama “After the Hunt,” which premieres Friday evening. The film is set in the world of higher education and stars Roberts as a beloved professor whose mentee, played by “The Bear’s” Ayo Edebiri, accuses her friend and colleague (Andrew Garfield) of crossing the line.

After the Hunt was directed by Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, who is no stranger to the festival. Last year he brought “Queer,” with Daniel Craig, and several years ago had “ Bones & All,” with Timothée Chalamet. His tennis love triangle film “Challengers,” with Zendaya, was supposed to open Venice in 2023 but the Hollywood strikes upended much of that year’s festival and it was pulled. Guadagnino regulars Michael Stuhlbarg and Chloë Sevigny are also part of the “After the Hunt” ensemble. Amazon MGM Studios plans an Oct. 10 theatrical release in North America. “After the Hunt” is playing out of competition at the festival, meaning it won’t be up for any of the major awards, Venice chief Alberto Barbera said that it was strong enough to be in the competition, but the studio requested otherwise.

Two days in, the 82nd edition of the Venice Film Festival is in full swing with many major premieres to come including Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” Benny Safdie’s “The Smashing Machine” and Kathryn Bigelow’s “A House of Dynamite.”