‘After the Hunt’ Stars Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri and Andrew Garfield Open New York Film Festival 2025

Luca Guadagnino shimmered — quite literally — as he made his way to the podium on the opening night of the 63rd annual New York Film Festival, held Friday at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall.

Dressed in a sequined gray suit jacket, the acclaimed director introduced his latest film, “After the Hunt,” a psychological thriller following Alma (Julia Roberts), a college professor who finds herself entangled in a moral and personal crisis when her protégé, Maggie (Ayo Edebiri), accuses Alma’s close friend and colleague Hank (Andrew Garfield) of sexual assault.

Taking the stage, Roberts shared a brief remark with the audience, saying, “I moved to New York when I was 17 years old — and I’m 57. This is top 3 great achievements of my New York life. So thank you so much for having us.”

After hugging Roberts, Guadagnino scurried back to the podium to quickly tell the crowd that the film was “made to make you talk about it and fight over it, and be laughing and being desperate and happy.”

Roberts and Guadagnino were joined at the premiere by co-stars Garfield, Edebiri and Michael Stuhlbarg, along with screenwriter Nora Garrett. Among the notable guests was Julia’s niece, Emma Roberts.

“One of the scenes I was really looking forward to was the one where Andrew Garfield’s character, Hank Gibson, confronts Julia’s character, Alma, in her classroom,” Garrett told Variety on the carpet. “That was Andrew’s first day on set, and he just knocked it out of the park. I almost started crying.”

“After the Hunt” is intentionally ambiguous, steering clear of black-and-white scenarios. Speaking about her approach to writing the film’s morally complex dialogue, Garrett explained, “I was an actor and so much of the acting training I got was about, ‘You have to be on your character’s side — even if they’re doing things that you don’t agree with. It’s not about judging your character. It’s about trying to find a place of commonality and work from there.’ And I think I did the same thing with the dialogue — I hope.”

After the screening, guests made their way to Tavern on the Green for the afterparty, where they enjoyed mini lobster rolls, assorted meat skewers and fingerling potatoes.

About an hour into the reception, Guadagnino arrived — still clad in his glittering ensemble.

“After the Hunt” opens in limited theaters in the U.S. on Oct. 10, before expanding wide on Oct. 17.