Barbican reveals Outdoor Cinema 2026 programme

This year’s curated programme features films from Spike Lee, Denis Villeneuve, Jean-Luc Godard, and Sean Baker screening on the venue’s Sculpture Court.

Date published: 14th May 2026

The Barbican’s Outdoor Cinema programme is returning this summer. The arts centre’s summer programme features favourites from some of the most acclaimed directors and auteurs from America, Europe, Africa, and Asia, running from Wednesday 19th August to Sunday 30th August. 

Image credit: Paramount UK 

The series of screenings in the Barbican’s Sculpture Court begins with Denis Villeneuve’s acclaimed 2016 sci-fi linguistic drama Arrival and closes with Spike Lee’s 2020 documentary of the Talking Heads frontman’s broadway show David Byrne’s American Utopia. Highlights of the programme include Palme d’Or winner Jafar Panahi’s 2006 feminist football film Offside, 1996 British LGBTQ+ comedy Beautiful Thing celebrating its 30th anniversary, Mati Diop’s dreamlike 2019 drama Atlantics, and John Singleton’s 1993 road film Poetic Justice. 

Head of Barbican Cinema, Rebecca Fons, called the lineup “an eclectic mix that includes but is not limited to beloved coming of age stories, cult classics, and one three-headed monster - all of which will look spectacular against the backdrop of the Barbican.”

Check out the full Outdoor Cinema 2026 programme here.

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