Horizon: An American Saga-Chapter Two, directed by and starring the Academy Award-winning filmmaker Kevin Costner, and also starring Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone and Danny Huston, will world premiere in the out-of-competition section at the 81st Venice International Film Festival taking place August 28th – September 7th 2024. Horizon: An American Saga-Chapter One will also be screened on the same day, Saturday 7 September, at the 81st VFF.
Horizon: An American Saga explores the lure of the Old West and how it was won – and lost – through the blood, sweat and tears of many. Spanning the four years of the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, Costner’s ambitious cinematic adventure will take audiences on an emotional journey across a country at war with itself, experienced through the lens of families, friends, and foes all attempting to discover what it truly means to be the United States of America.
New Line Cinema’s Horizon: An American Saga, Chapters One and Two, is a multi-faceted chronicle covering the Civil War expansion and settlement of the American West. A story of America too big for one film, this true cinematic event is also written by Kevin Costner, who co-writes with Jon Baird (The Explorers Guild) and produces through his Territory Pictures.
Kevin Costner says, “My dream was always to show Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter Two at the Venice Film Festival. The fact that now they have decided to show Chapter One earlier in the day and then the World Premiere of Chapter Two that evening shows not only their belief in how the two films work together but their support of a director’s vision. I’m indebted to Alberto Barbera for his courage and leadership in committing to this cinematic journey. It is with gratitude and excitement that I return to the Venice Film Festival. Long live the movies and those willing to stand for them.”
Kevin Costner returns to directing for the first time since his 2003 critically acclaimed hit Open Range, and revisits Civil War-era America, the setting for his 1990 blockbuster and directorial debut, Dances with Wolves, which won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. He produces alongside Howard Kaplan and Mark Gillard, with Danny Peykoff, Robert Scannell, Armyan Bernstein, Charlie Lyons, Barry Berg and Rod Lake executive producing.
Costner is joined behind the camera by director of photography J. Michael Muro (Billionaire Boys Club, Parker), production designer Derek R. Hill (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, The Magnificent Seven), editor Miklos Wright (For All Mankind, Open Range) and costume designer Lisa Lovaas (Ambulance, Transformers: The Last Knight). The music is by Oscar nominee John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, The Greatest Showman).