Three days into the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, Park City hit full stride: packed sidewalks, buzzing lines outside venues, and that familiar Sundance rhythm of premieres, post-screening chatter, and late-night scene-setting across Main Street.

One of the day’s most talked-about arrivals came in Salt Lake City, where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended the Sundance premiere of “COOKIE QUEENS,” the new documentary they executive-produced. The film tracks four Girl Scouts through cookie season, an all-American rite of passage reframed here as a coming-of-age sprint driven by ambition, teamwork, and big feelings.

On the big-screen front, the festival’s star power stayed dialed all the way up. Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård drew cheers for “WICKER”, a surreal, fairy-tale-leaning romantic fable that’s already become a watercooler title in the first weekend rush.

At Eccles, Olivia Wilde’s “THE INVITE” landed with the kind of crowd-pleasing lift Sundance audiences love: laughs, applause, and a standing ovation for Wilde and castmates Seth Rogen, Edward Norton, and Penélope Cruz.

Not long after, Cathy Yan’s “THE GALLERIST” delivered another high-wattage premiere, with Natalie Portman leading a sharp, darkly comedic take on the art world — with Jenna Ortega and Charli XCX among the film’s scene-stealing orbit.

Away from the red carpets, Sundance’s off-screen energy stayed mountain-high: talks, pop-ups, and curbside activations kept filmmakers and fans mixing between screenings — a reminder that at Sundance, the “festival” is as much the in-between as the main event.

Emerging voices spotlighted at Native Forum Celebration

Sundance also used the day to amplify Indigenous storytelling. At the Native Forum Celebration in Park City, the Sundance Institute announced Masami Kawai as the 2026 Merata Mita Fellow, and named Isabella Madrigal and Tsanavi Spoonhunter as the 2026 Graton Fellows. The Merata Mita Fellowship supports an Indigenous woman-identified artist developing a feature, while the Graton Fellowship (now in its third year) backs Indigenous storytellers from California-based tribes.

January 24 highlights, in brief

Other notable premieres and program moments included:

• “FING!” with Taika Waititi (family matinee)

• “SILENCED,” Selina Miles’ documentary examining the silencing of women’s voices

• “IF I GO WILL THEY MISS ME”, Walter Thompson-Hernández’s feature expansion of his Sundance-awarded short

• “THE BEST SUMMER”, Tamra Davis’ camcorder-POV dive into Summersault ’95 and its electric alt-music lineup

Festival dates + online viewing

The 2026 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 22nd to February 1st, in person in Park City and Salt Lake City, with a selection of titles available online starting January 29th.

Danielle Brooks and J. Alphonse Nicholson