London Film Festival Sets Talks With Andrew Scott, Cynthia Erivo, More

The BFI London Film Festival has unveiled an impressive lineup of talent set to take part in screen talks at its upcoming 70th edition, including several stars who are already starting to appear on early awards contender lists.

This year’s roster includes Andrew Scott (“All of Us Strangers,” “Ripley”), Ava DuVernay (“Selma,” “13th”); Brad Bird (“The Iron Giant,” “The Incredibles”); Cynthia Erivo (“Harriet,” “Wicked”); James Gray (“We Own the Night,” “Ad Astra”); Jesse Eisenberg (“The Social Network,” “A Real Pain”); John Malkovich (“Places in the Heart,” “In the Line of Fire”). Mahershala Ali (“Moonlight,” “Green Book”); Naomi Ackie (“I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” “Blink Twice”); Sofia Coppola (“The Virgin Suicides,” “Marie Antoinette”), and Danny Boyle (“Trainspotting,” “Slumdog Millionaire”).

Scott is already garnering early praise for his leading role as famed actor Ian Charleson in “Elsinore,” which is opening the London Film Festival, as is John Malkovich for his turn as an aging CIA agent in “Wild Horse Nine.” Boyle, meanwhile, directs Venice opener “Ink,” while Eisenberg is already planning his return to London after “A Real Pain” to close the LFF with his latest stint as director, “The Debut.”

All but one of the talks will be held at London’s BFI Southbank, with Boyle’s marking the first outside the capital, taking place at Home in Manchester. They’ll also be available on BFI Player and BFI YouTube.

The LFF, which runs Oct 7 — Oct 18, as already unveiled its industry program, to be led by talks with acclaimed and award-winning producer Pippa Harris (“Hamnet,” “1917”) and James Wilson (“The Zone of Interest,” “The Voice of Hind Rajab”), plus its main competition. The full lineup of films is expected to be announced shortly.