The Christophers (2025)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
An elderly painter and a struggling artist form an unlikely bond while navigating a scheme to forge and sell his unfinished works.
The story
Julian Sklar, an eccentric and elderly painter in London, has a reputation that has faded with age. His children, Barnaby and Sallie, hire Lori Butler, a struggling artist, to pose as his assistant and secretly finish his unfinished 'Christophers' series of paintings. They intend to sell the completed works for a fortune after his death. When Lori meets Julian, she discovers he is sharper than he appears. Although he initially orders her to destroy the unfinished works, the two begin to develop a deep mutual respect for each other's artistry as they navigate the complexities of his legacy and her own career.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Julian Sklar, an elderly and eccentric painter in London, has a reputation that has faded over time. His children, Barnaby and Sallie, hire Lori Butler, a struggling artist, to pose as his assistant and secretly finish his unfinished 'Christophers' paintings so they can sell them for a fortune after his death. Julian, however, realizes Lori is an artist and they form a bond over their shared craft. After a series of complications involving forged paintings and their shared history, Julian dies with a paintbrush in hand. Following his death, Lori takes the real 'Christophers' and modifies them in a radical, 'unsaleable' style, eventually gifting the works to Julian's former lover, the actual Christopher. At a memorial show, the works are displayed alongside a modern piece combining Julian's social media videos, while Lori receives a final, signed self-portrait from his estate.
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 100
- Production countries
- United States; United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Steven Soderbergh
- Writers
- Ed Solomon · writer
- Cast and characters
- Ian McKellen · Julian Sklar; Michaela Coel · Lori Butler; James Corden · Barnaby Sklar; Jessica Gunning · Sallie Sklar; Tilly Botsford · Esme; Daniel Fearn · locksmith; Lucy McCormick · Lori's flatmates; Le Fil · Lori's flatmates; Dallas Campbell · Art Fight moderator; Ferdy Roberts · Owen Appleton
- Genres
- black comedy
- Themes
- artistic integrity; legacy; dying; ego
- Tone and mood
- biting; emotional; sly
- Premise and plot tags
- art forgery; inheritance; unlikely friendship
- Reception
- The film received generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the performances of the leads and the original script.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 79 · scale: 100 · review count: 42
- Production trivia
- The film features a score by David Holmes.; The film was shot in Fitzrovia in the London Borough of Camden.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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