La grazia
La grazia (lit. 'The pardon') is a 2025 Italian drama film produced, written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. Starring Toni Servillo, Anna Ferzetti, and Massimo Venturiello, it follows a fictional Catholic Italian president conflicted about the pending approval of euthanasia in the country.
Article
La grazia
La grazia (lit. 'The pardon') is a 2025 Italian drama film produced, written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. Starring Toni Servillo, Anna Ferzetti, and Massimo Venturiello, it follows a fictional Catholic Italian president conflicted about the pending approval of euthanasia in the country.
The film had its world premiere as the opening film of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on 27 August 2025, where Servillo won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor. It was theatrically released in Italy on 15 January 2026.
Plot
La grazia
President of Italy Mariano De Santis, a staunch Catholic and experienced jurist, begins his white semester and is conflicted about whether he should sign into law a bill legalizing euthanasia, and at the same time has to consider the pardon petitions of two individuals who murdered their partners before the end of his term.
Cast
La grazia
Additionally, rapper Guè appears as himself.
Production
Development
The film was announced on 4 December 2024, with Paolo Sorrentino writing and directing. Sorrentino explained that the inspiration for the film came by the case of a man pardoned by Italian president Sergio Mattarella after being convicted for murdering his wife, who was suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
Casting
Toni Servillo, a longtime collaborator of Sorrentino, was announced as a cast member on 4 December 2024. In May 2025, Massimo Venturiello revealed that he had also taken part in the film.
Filming
Sorrentino had scouted locations throughout Piedmont prior to filming. Principal photography began in Turin in March 2025. Filming took place at the Castello del Valentino, the Moncalieri Castle, the Palazzo Chiablese, the Polytechnic University of Turin, the Accademia delle Scienze di Torino, the Museo Egizio, and the Tesoriera bowling alley. Filming also took place at the Piazza di Spagna in Rome. Filming was completed by early May 2025.
Release
La grazia
In February 2025, Mubi acquired worldwide rights to the film, excluding Italy; the company will distribute in North and Latin America, the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Austria, the Benelux, Spain, Turkey, India, Australia, and New Zealand, with their subsidiary The Match Factory handling sales elsewhere.
During a Q&A session at SXSW London in June 2025, Efe Cakarel, CEO of Mubi, hinted towards La grazia premiering at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. This news was confirmed in July 2025, with La grazia announced as the festival's opening film; it premiered in competition for the Golden Lion on 27 August 2025. The film also screened at the New York Film Festival and the BFI London Film Festival. It received a theatrical release in Italy on 15 January 2026.
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 80% of 46 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "Celebrating the virtues of fortitude and patience, La Grazia is an atypically restrained effort from writer-director Paolo Sorrentino that reunites him with the dependably majestic Toni Servillo." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 69 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Accolades
<table><thead><tr><th>Award</th><th>Date of ceremony</th><th>Category</th><th>Recipient(s)</th><th>Result</th><th>Ref.</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Venice Film Festival</td><td>September 6, 2025</td><td>Golden Lion</td><td>Paolo Sorrentino</td><td>Nominated</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Brian Award</td><td>Won</td></tr><tr><td>Volpi Cup for Best Actor</td><td>Toni Servillo</td><td>Won</td></tr><tr><td>Chicago International Film Festival</td><td>October 24, 2025</td><td>Gold Hugo</td><td>La grazia</td><td>Nominated</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Best Screenplay</td><td>Paolo Sorrentino</td><td>Won</td></tr><tr><td>European Film Awards</td><td>January 17, 2026</td><td>Best Screenwriter</td><td>Paolo Sorrentino</td><td>Nominated</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Best Actor</td><td>Toni Servillo</td><td>Nominated</td></tr></tbody></table>