Festival Honours Horror and Fantasy Icons
The 59th Sitges Film Festival, running from 8 to 18 October 2026, will welcome director Peter Jackson, actor Danny DeVito and actress Amy Irving as recipients of the Honorary Grand Prize. The announcement was made by Mònica Garcia Massagué, director of the festival’s foundation, at a press conference in Barcelona, with festival director Ángel Sala joining remotely. Jackson, best known for the Lord of the Rings trilogy, returns to Sitges over 30 years after presenting Braindead, which will screen in a new 4K restoration under its Spanish title Tu madre se ha comido a mi perro. He will also participate in a special session on King Kong alongside Rick Baker, the special effects artist behind the 1976 film’s iconic ape suit, which marks its 50th anniversary this year.
Peter Jackson is coming back to Sitges more than three decades after he presented 'Braindead' here.
Danny DeVito will attend as executive producer of Drag, a film in the Official Fantàstic Competition section starring his daughter Lucy DeVito. Amy Irving will appear for a screening of Brian De Palma’s 1978 thriller The Fury, following her earlier recognition at the festival for Carrie.
Spanish Director Makes History with Opening Film
The festival will open with Found Alive by Spanish filmmaker Carlota Pereda, the first film directed by a Spanish woman to inaugurate the event. It will be screened alongside the short film Homing by Lizzie Atherton and Hansel Rodrigues. The closing film will be Wicker by Alex Huston Ficker and Eleanor Wilson. Alejandro Amenábar will receive the Méliès Career Award on the 30th anniversary of his debut feature Tesis, which will be shown in a restored version. The Time Machine Awards will also celebrate Robert Eggers for historical horror, Yuen Woo-ping for action choreography, editor Bob Murawski, director Takashi Shimizu for J-Horror, and Mark L. Lester for 1980s popular cinema.
Festivalgoers can find full programming and ticket information via the Sitges Film Festival official website.
Reported by europapress.es, notimerica.com, infobae.com, lavanguardia.com, sitgesfilmfestival.com, tourismattractions.net, en.ara.cat, Agència de Promoció Turisme de Sitges, RUSSPAIN.com, particle.news.
