# The Shrouds

The Shrouds (French: Les Linceuls) is a 2024 body horror drama film written and directed by David Cronenberg, and starring Diane Kruger, Vincent Cassel, Guy Pearce, and Sandrine Holt. The film is a co-production between Canada and France.
The Shrouds had its world premiere in Main Competition section of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival on May 20, 2024. The film is scheduled to be released theatrically in France by Pyramide Distribution on April 30, 2025.

## Premise

Karsh, 50, is a prominent businessman. Inconsolable since the death of his wife, he invents GraveTech, a revolutionary and controversial technology that enables the living to monitor their dear departed's corpses as they decay in their shrouds. One night, multiple graves, including that of Karsh’s wife, are desecrated. Karsh sets out to track down the perpetrators.

## Cast

* Vincent Cassel as Karsh
* Diane Kruger as Becca / Terry / Hunny
* Guy Pearce as Maury
* Sandrine Holt as Soo-Min Szabo
* Elizabeth Saunders as Gray Foner
* Jennifer Dale as Myrna Slotnik
* Eric Weinthal as Dr. Hofstra
* Steve Switzman as Dr. Jerry Eckler
* Jeff Yung as Dr. Rory Zhao

## Production

The concept was originally envisaged as a television series for Netflix, with Cronenberg writing two episodes before the plans were cancelled by Netflix.
Saïd Ben Saïd and Martin Katz produced the film for Prospero Pictures and SBS International alongside co-producer Steve Solomos. The cinematographer Douglas Koch worked alongside art director Jason Clarke and production designer Carol Spier and costume designer Anne Dixon.
In an interview, Cronenberg described the film as very "personal" and "autobiographical". It is directly inspired by his own grief at the loss of his wife, Carolyn, who died in 2017.

### Casting

The project was first announced in May 2022, with Vincent Cassel attached to play the lead role. In September 2022, Léa Seydoux joined the cast. In April 2023, Diane Kruger replaced Seydoux, and Guy Pearce joined the cast. That month, Sandrine Holt also joined the cast.

### Filming

Principal photography began on May 8, 2023, in Toronto, Canada, and wrapped on June 19, 2023.

## Release

The film was screened in Main Competition section at the 77th Cannes Film Festival on May 20, 2024. It also played at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 5, 2024.
The film is set to be released theatrically in France by Pyramide Distribution on April 30, 2025, reportedly pushed back from a release in January, 2025. Sideshow and Janus Films will release the film in the United States. The Shrouds will open on April 18 in New York and Los Angeles, before expanding nationwide on April 25, 2025.

## Reception
### Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 75% of 51 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "Ruminating on the love within loss, The Shrouds is a personal and peculiar examination of grief by director David Cronenberg." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 59 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. The film was named to TIFF's annual Canada's Top Ten list for 2024.

## Accolades

List of awards and nominations for The Shrouds :
| Award or film festival | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
| Cannes Film Festival | May 25, 2024 | Palme d'Or | David Cronenberg | Nominated | |