Vertical has shared the official trailer for the upcoming U.S. debut of The Wizard of the Kremlin, a political dark comedy movie. Following its world premiere at the 2025 Venice International Film Festival, the movie is now slated to arrive in U.S. theaters on May 15, 2026.
“In the chaos of post-Soviet Russia, rising KGB officer Vladimir Putin joins forces with master manipulator Vadim Baranov to reshape life behind the Iron Curtain, using violence and deception to change the world forever. Putin and Baranov’s reign of chaos begins with lies and corruption, and quickly escalates to assassinations, tyranny, and eventually all-out war,” reads the synopsis.
Check out The Wizard of the Kremlin trailer below (watch more trailers):
What do we know about The Wizard of the Kremlin?
The Wizard of the Kremlin cast includes Jude Law as Vladimir Putin, Paul Dano as Vadim Baranov, Jeffrey Wright as Rowland, Alicia Vikander as Ksenia, Tom Sturridge as Dmitri Sidorov, and Will Keen as Boris Berezovsky. The movie is directed by acclaimed filmmaker Olivier Assayas, who co-wrote the screenplay with Emmanuel Carrère, based on the 2022 fictionalized novel Le Mage du Kremlin by Giuliano da Empoli.
The film is executive-produced by Alexandra Abrams, Justin Ardalan-Raikes, Sylvie Barthet, Niraj Bhatia, Lee Broda, Patrick Doherty, Max Kondziolka, Stuart Manashil, Joel Michaely, Michael Paletta, Thomas Pierce, Jeff Rice, Dean Sansovich, Theodore Shivdasani, Hugh Strange, and Scott Weber. Producers are Olivier Delbosc for Curiosa Films and Sidonie Dumas for Gaumont, with France 2 Cinéma serving as a co-producer.
The creative team consists of editor Marion Monnier, director of photography Yorick Le Saux, casting director Antoinette Boulat, and production designer François-Renaud Labarthe. Despite its star-studded cast, the film has received early mixed reviews from critics. So far, it currently holds an approval rating of 52% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 44 reviews.
