Club Zero

Club Zero is a 2023 internationally co-produced dark comedy thriller film, directed and produced by Jessica Hausner, from a screenplay by Hausner and Géraldine Bajard. It stars Mia Wasikowska, Mathieu Demy, Elsa Zylberstein, Amir El-Masry and Sidse Babett Knudsen.

The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 22 May 2023.

Plot
A teacher at an elite school forms a bond with five students, which takes a shocking turn when their approach to intermittent fasting goes too far.

Cast

 * Mia Wasikowska as Miss Novak
 * Sidse Babett Knudsen as Miss Dorset
 * Elsa Zylberstein as Elsa's mother
 * Mathieu Demy as Elsa's father
 * Luke Barker as Fred
 * Ksenia Devriendt as Elsa
 * Florence Baker as Ragna
 * Samuel D. Anderson as Ben
 * Gwen Currant as Helen
 * Andrei Hozoc as Corbinian
 * Sade McNichols-Thomas as Joan
 * Amir El-Masry as Mr. Dahl
 * Amanda Lawrence as Miss Benedict
 * Sam Hoare as Fred's father
 * Keeley Forsyth as Ragna's mother
 * Lukas Turtur as Ragna's father
 * Camilla Rutherford as Fred's mother
 * Laoisha O'Callaghan as Helen's mother
 * Isabel Lamers as Fred's Doctor

Production
In February 2022, it was reported that Mia Wasikowska joined the cast of the film, with Jessica Hausner directing and producing from a screenplay by herself and Géraldine Bajard. In August 2022, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Amir El-Masry, Mathieu Demy, Elsa Zylberstein, Luke Barker, Amanda Lawrence, Sam Hoare, Keeley Forsyth, Lukas Turtur, Camilla Rutherford, Samuel D. Anderson, Florence Baker, Ksenia Devriendt and Gwen Currant joined the cast of the film.

Principal photography began in Oxford on 25 July 2022.

Release
The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 22 May 2023. It is slated to have its North American premiere at the 2023 Calgary International Film Festival, in the International Narrative Competition lineup. It was also invited at the 28th Busan International Film Festival in 'World Cinema' section and was screened on 7 October 2023.

It was released in France by BAC Films on 27 September 2023. Austrian distributor Filmladen has scheduled a release date of 17 November 2023. Film Movement is set to distribute the film in the United States.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 63% based on 46 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 53 out of 100, based on 11 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.