Kelly Reichardt returns to the Cannes Competition lineup with The Mastermind, a quietly ambitious new feature that sees her reunited with longtime collaborators at Filmscience. Set in a sleepy Massachusetts town during the 1970s, the film stars Josh O’Connor as JB Mooney, an out-of-work carpenter who stumbles into the world of art theft. Newly released stills offer a first look at the characters and palette of a film that seems to mix vintage Americana with slow-building suspense.
The supporting cast includes John Magaro, Hope Davis, Bill Camp, and Amanda Plummer, among others — a lineup well suited to Reichardt’s signature ensemble storytelling. As Mooney’s heist plans begin to unravel, so too does his already fragile sense of control, suggesting a drama as much about internal collapse as criminal ambition.
MUBI has picked up distribution rights in key territories including North America, the UK, Germany, India, and Latin America. The Match Factory will handle international sales elsewhere. This marks the streamer’s second collaboration with Reichardt, following their work on First Cow, and continues a partnership with Filmscience that dates back to Old Joy.
With its period setting, understated tension, and a director known for finding poetry in small moments, The Mastermind looks poised to deliver something both familiar and quietly subversive — a heist film less about the loot than the loneliness behind it.
