In the coming weeks and months, the 2023 movie schedule will be inundated with all kinds of heavy hitters and Academy Award contenders as we work our way through the final stretch of the year. One of the movies near the top of that list is The Holdovers, a new coming-of-age dramedy starring Paul Giamatti. Directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Alexander Payne, the movie tells the story of a winter break shared by a teacher, a student, and a school cook, an experience they won’t soon forget.
If this is the first you’re hearing about The Holdovers, worry not, we are about to break down everything we know about the upcoming movie, including its release date, trailer, and so much more. Let’s go back to the 1970s and explore this forthcoming feature film.
What Is The Holdovers Release Date?
There isn’t that much time to wait until The Holdovers is showing in theaters, as its theatrical rollout starts on October 27, 2023, though only in limited markets like New York City and Los Angeles, Focus Features has announced. Audiences around the country will get to see the movie for themselves when the nationwide expansion kicks off on November 10, 2023, the same day Nia DaCosta’s The Marvels opens on the big screen.
At one point, The Holdovers was slated for a November 22, 2023, wide release (with the limited rollout kicking off on November 10), Variety reported earlier in the year, but the film’s debut is coming a few weeks earlier now. This has it coming out a couple of weeks before other big awards contenders like Ridley Scott's Napoleon starring Joaquin Phoenix and Bradley Cooper's Maestro.
Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa, And Da'Vine Joy Randolph Lead The Holdovers Cast
As stated above, Paul Giamatti sits at the top of The Holdovers cast with his portrayal of Paul Hunham, a cranky and not-well-liked history professor at a New England prep school tasked with watching over students who have nowhere to go for the holidays. Joining Giamatti in this unconventional holiday movie is Dominic Sessa, who takes on the role of Angus Tully, one of the students left behind. The Holdovers is the young actor’s feature film debut.
The cast also includes Da'Vine Joy Randolph, who will portray Mary Lamb, the prep school’s head cook. Randolph has been on an absolute tear the past few years after her breakout performance as Lady Reed in Dolemite Is My Name, and she has been a fixture of the Only Murders in the Building cast since the show’s 2021 debut.
The Holdovers Trailer Teases An Unlikely Bond Between A Strict Teacher And A Rebellious Student
In July 2023, Focus Features gave the world a peek into Alexander Payne’s new movie in the form of a nearly three-minute trailer teasing what’s to come when The Holdovers opens to audiences. The first half, which has an upbeat tone akin to an ‘80s movie about a rebellious group of students at a prep school, focuses mostly on Paul Giamatti’s strict teacher as he comes to terms with “babysitting” students who have no place to go during the holidays. At the center of these students is Dominic Sessa’s Angus, who is more than capable of trading barbs with his instructor.
However, in the second half, especially after it’s revealed that Angus’ father is dead and his mother left him at school over winter break, the film’s heart is fully exposed. This second half teases an unlikely bond between the strict teacher and rebellious student as they learn about each other, and themselves, during their stay together.
The Holdovers Follows A Prep School Teacher As He Spends The Holidays With A Group Of Students Who Have Nowhere To Go
As seen in the trailer above, The Holdovers will spend a holiday break with a teacher, students, and head cook at a prestigious New England prep school. While the rest of the students, faculty, and staff have gone home for the two-week winter break, these three stick around and have an unexpected experience like no other. According to the film’s official plot synopsis, the curmudgeonly instructor, damaged and intelligent student, and cook, who recently lost her son in Vietnam, will form a deep and unlikely bond over the course of their stay.
Director Alexander Payne Developed The Holdovers With Writer David Hemingson After Watching A 1930s French Film
Though Alexander Payne has written most of his own movies, Nebraska being the only one not penned by him heading into The Holdovers, he didn’t write his latest feature film. However, the two-time Academy Award winner (he won Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars for Sideways and The Descendants) did come up with the basic premise of the movie after watching an old 1930s French film.
Back in June 2021, when the project was first announced, Payne told Deadline that the idea came to him after watching that fateful film, but he didn’t have a background in the boarding school world, so he needed some help. The filmmaker explained that he came across a writing sample for a pilot set in that world written by Whiskey Cavalier showrunner David Hemingson, so he contacted him and went from there.
This Is The First Time Alexander Payne And Paul Giamatti Have Worked Together Since 2004's Sideways
Alexander Payne and Paul Giamatti both reached new heights following the success of Sideways, but the pair didn’t work together again until teaming up for The Holdovers. In a September 2023 interview with Collider, Payne explained that he always wanted to work with the actor again, but he never really came close to making it happen until his latest project. While he said the role of Paul Hunham wasn't tailor-made for Giamatti, he had him in mind:
I told him early on, 'Just so you know, this cat and I are conceiving something for you.' 'Great, great, great. What is it?' And I told him the basic premise. 'Great.' I showed him an early draft. He still liked it. ... We kept honing the draft, and it just worked out well. It couldn’t have worked out better.
Though Giamatti somehow didn’t receive an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Miles Raymond in Sideways, one of the best movies of the 2000s, he took home a Screen Actors Guild award and other accolades for one of his defining performances.
It may be too early to start talking about the 2024 Oscars, but any conversation had about the upcoming awards show, and all the others leading up to it, could very well feature The Holdovers.
