Jessie Buckley Stuns in New Musical Film “Monstrous” — March 2026

• Who Is Jessie Buckley?
• What Is “Monstrous” About?
• Buckley’s Performance and Musical Numbers
• Release Details and Where to Watch
• Quick Comparison
• Pros and Cons
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Verdict

If you watch one musical film in 2026, make it Monstrous. Jessie Buckley, the Oscar-nominated Irish actress known for Women Talking and The Lost Daughter, delivers what early reviewers are calling her most emotionally raw performance yet. The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2026 to a standing ovation. For fans already tracking the surge of prestige musical films this year — a trend we covered in our entertainment section — Monstrous sits at the very top.

Who Is Jessie Buckley?

Buckley isn’t a newcomer who got lucky. Born in Killarney, Ireland in 1989, she trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first caught global attention on the BBC talent show I’d Do Anything in 2008. Since then, her résumé has been relentlessly impressive — Wild Rose (2018), Chernobyl (2019), I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020), and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Women Talking in 2023.

Here’s the thing — Buckley was always a singer first. Her roots in musical theatre run deep, which makes Monstrous feel less like a career pivot and more like an inevitable destination. The industry has been waiting for a project that puts both her vocal and dramatic gifts front and centre simultaneously.

What Is “Monstrous” About?

Monstrous is directed by Lynne Ramsay (We Need to Talk About Kevin, You Were Never Really Here), which alone should tell you this won’t be a conventional musical. The film follows Clara, a grieving folk singer in 1970s rural Ireland who begins to suspect the farmhouse she’s inherited holds a dark, shape-shifting presence.

The screenplay, written by Ramsay and Enda Walsh (the Tony Award-winning playwright behind Once on Broadway), blends psychological horror with original folk songs composed by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead fame. Greenwood previously scored Spencer and The Power of the Dog, and his fingerprints are all over Monstrous — dissonant strings, haunting acoustic guitar, silence used as a weapon.

The runtime is 112 minutes. Production budget sits at approximately £18 million, co-financed by Film4, A24, and the Irish Film Board. A24’s involvement alone signals serious awards ambitions.

Buckley’s Performance and Musical Numbers

Buckley performs all nine original songs live on set — no post-production vocal dubbing. That decision, confirmed by Ramsay in her Berlin press conference, gives the musical sequences an urgency that studio-polished recordings simply cannot replicate. You hear breath. You hear strain. You hear fear.

The standout number, “The Hollow Beneath the Hill,” runs four minutes and forty seconds and is performed in a single unbroken take. Critics at Berlin described it as one of the finest cinematic musical moments since Björk’s “I’ve Seen It All” in Dancer in the Dark.

Alongside Buckley, the cast includes Ciarán Hinds as her estranged father and Jessie Cave as a neighbouring widow. Both deliver strong supporting work, but make no mistake — this film belongs entirely to Buckley. Her ability to shift from quiet vulnerability to full-throated terror within a single verse is something you simply have to see.

Release Details and Where to Watch

Monstrous opens in UK and Irish cinemas on March 20, 2026, with a US wide release on April 3, 2026 through A24. International streaming rights have been acquired by MUBI, with a streaming premiere expected approximately 90 days post-theatrical release — putting the digital debut around late June 2026.

Ticket pricing follows standard cinema rates — roughly £12–£16 in the UK and $14–$18 in the US depending on format. IMAX and Dolby Cinema screenings are confirmed for select locations, and given Greenwood’s score, the Dolby audio experience is genuinely worth the premium.

For context on how A24 has been reshaping prestige cinema distribution, our film coverage has tracked the studio’s theatrical strategy closely over the past year. Monstrous fits squarely into their model — limited prestige run, awards push, then streaming.

The film is already shortlisted for consideration at Cannes 2026 in the Un Certain Regard category, per Variety’s March 2026 report.

Quick Comparison

Pros and Cons