The 68th Venice Film Festival will open Aug. 31 with the Ides of March. George Clooney directed and cowrote with Grant Heslov the adaptation based on Beau Willimon’s play Farragut North.
The political drama stars Clooney as a governor with his sights set on the White House, Ryan Gosling as his press secretary and Paul Giamatti as his rival’s campaign manager. Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, and Max Minghella are among the co-stars. Sony Pictures unveils The Ides of March in US theaters 7 October 2011.