MGM Secures Worldwide Rights to Luca Guadagnino’s Bones and All

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), the studio behind landmark franchises such as James Bond and Rocky, recently became part of Amazon after an $8.5 billion acquisition. In the studio’s first major move since the merger, MGM has acquired worldwide distribution rights to Luca Guadagnino’s forthcoming film, Bones and All.

Director Luca Guadagnino reunites with Timothée Chalamet, who earned widespread acclaim for his Oscar-nominated performance in Call Me By Your Name. In Bones and All, Chalamet plays Lee, a drifting young man who forms a complex bond with Maren, portrayed by Taylor Russell (known for performances in films such as Waves and Escape Room). The principal cast also includes Mark Rylance, André Holland, Jessica Harper, Michael Stuhlbarg—who previously worked with Guadagnino on Call Me By Your Name—director David Gordon Green, Francesca Scorsese, and Chloë Sevigny.

The screenplay is written by David Kajganich, a longtime collaborator of Guadagnino who also worked on Suspira. Bones and All explores the first love between Maren and Lee as they travel across America in search of Maren’s father. Along the way, Maren seeks answers about the compulsion that drives her to kill and consume people close to her. Set against the backdrop of Reagan-era America, the film blends elements of classic American road movies—evocative of films like Jerry Schatzberg’s Scarecrow—with a raw, visceral intensity that calls to mind contemporary body-horror cinema.

MGM Film Group Chairman Michael De Luca and President Pam Abdy issued a joint statement expressing their enthusiasm for the project and for working with Guadagnino and the cast. They praised Guadagnino’s long-standing passion for cinema and his unique artistic vision, noting that his career has spanned a wide range of genres while maintaining a distinct creative voice. De Luca and Abdy emphasized their excitement to bring Bones and All to theaters so that audiences can experience the film on the big screen.

“Since his earliest days, Luca has been obsessed with movies, which makes him a kindred spirit to us both. We have long admired his devotion to the kind of cinema that is both admired and passionately discussed by moviegoing audiences. He is the rare filmmaker whose two-decades long career has spanned countless genres and subjects, and throughout he has remained true to his unique vision. We are equally thrilled to be working with Timothée, Taylor, Mark and this outstanding ensemble cast whose work in Bones and All will be a must see on the big screen.”

Guadagnino also commented on the partnership with MGM, expressing appreciation for a studio he described as one that loves filmmakers and supports bold visions. He said he was proud to work with MGM’s leadership and to have the film released under a studio banner with so much cinematic history.

“I am delighted that MGM, a studio that so clearly loves filmmakers and respects bold vision, is going to bring my movie into the world and that the amazing work of Timothée, Taylor, Mark and the rest of the cast will be seen in theaters. Bones and All could not be in better hands with Kevin Ulrich, Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy at the helm. I am truly proud to be associated with the iconic lion that has roared at the start of so many of my favorite films over the decades.”

Production on Bones and All has wrapped in Ohio. While MGM has not announced an official release date, industry reporting indicates the film will not be ready in time for the Cannes Film Festival this May and is therefore expected to debut later in the year. MGM’s acquisition of worldwide distribution rights positions the film for a broad theatrical rollout once a release schedule is finalized.

Bones and All represents a notable collaboration between an auteur director, an award-winning young star, and a studio newly backed by a major tech company. The film’s combination of a tender love story and unsettling thematic material suggests a project that aims to be both emotionally affecting and provocative—designed to spark conversation among audiences and critics alike.

As MGM prepares to shepherd this project into theaters, attention will be on how the studio balances the film’s art-house sensibilities with mainstream distribution, and whether Bones and All will find both critical acclaim and commercial success. For now, audiences can anticipate seeing Guadagnino’s distinct cinematic voice reunited with Timothée Chalamet in a story that mixes road-movie Americana with darker, more intimate impulses.