Jesse Eisenberg's third directorial feature, "The Debut," premiered at the Telluride Film Festival to a rapturous response, immediately establishing itself as a genuine Best Picture contender. The film stars Julianne Moore as a mild-mannered housewife who lands an unexpected role in a community-theatre production and descends into fanatical method acting, with Paul Giamatti as the tyrannical director overseeing her transformation. The comedy-turned-drama, staged as a faux musical set in a New Jersey rec centre, is being praised as a showcase for both stars and confirms Eisenberg's skill at directing awards-calibre performances, following his earlier Oscar win for Kieran Culkin in "A Real Pain."

A24 will release "The Debut" on 11 December, a date reflecting confidence in a sustained awards push, following the studio's previous Best Picture wins with "Moonlight" and "Everything Everywhere All at Once." Moore, a five-time nominee with one win (for "Still Alice"), is being tipped as an early frontrunner after drawing spontaneous applause during her Telluride screening, while Giamatti — never an Oscar winner despite acclaimed turns in "Sideways" and "The Holdovers" — is seen as a strong supporting-actor contender. The film also features Bernadette Peters and Halle Bailey, with cinematography by Drew Daniels ("Anora") and a score by Emil Mosseri ("Minari").