Kristen Stewart has been out of the spotlight since her role in this winter’s Love Lies Bleeding, but the actress has definitely kept her finger on the film pulse. Stewart went full-on geek chic—clear eyeglasses and all—to host a screening of director Sean Baker’s buzzy new film Anora last night.
Stewart styled a basic white tee under a knit vest from Thom Browne. She left her sleeveless piece partially unbuttoned allowing for a peek at its tri-color stripe detailing inside. Stewart’s outfit exuded more “seasoned director” than “leading lady,” something that rang especially true considering that she just wrapped filming on her long-awaited feature directorial debut, The Chronology of Water. She posed for photos with Anora star Mikey Madison who wore a printed black dress that she belted at the waist.
Madison plays the titular Anora, a Brooklyn lap dancer, who marries the son of a Russian oligarch named Vanya (Mark Eidelstein). Their nuptials are soon in jeopardy as news of their relationship makes its way to Russia and Vanya’s parents attempt to have their marriage annulled at all costs. It made history at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first American film since Tree of Life (2011) to take home the event’s top prize, the Palme d’Or. “I was floored,” Madison told Deadline of when she got the call from Baker to lead the film. “It was definitely the most preparation, physically and emotionally I’ve ever done for a character,” she added.
Stewart, meanwhile, is busy putting the final touches on her extremely delayed directorial effort, The Chronology of Water. The actor’s passion project is based on author Lidia Yuknavitch’s best-selling memoir of the same name. It stars Imogen Poots and officially wrapped this summer after filming for six weeks in Malta and Latvia. In a January 2024 interview, Stewart spoke at length about her frustrations financing the film which she first expressed interest in all the way back in 2018.
“I’m going to make this movie before I ever work for someone else,” she said. “Yeah, I will quit the fucking business. I won’t make a-fucking-nother movie until I make this movie. I will tell you that, for sure. I think that will get things going.”