Pathé, the revered French studio behind “The Three Musketeers” and “The Count of Monte Cristo,” has revealed a teaser for “De Gaulle,” Antonin Baudry’s sweeping two-part historical thriller saga charting the French Resistance during WWII through the eyes of General Charles de Gaulle.
Slated as a major theatrical event for summer 2026, the two films – titled “De Gaulle: Tilting Iron” and “De Gaulle: The Sovereign Edge” — will be released in France just weeks apart, with “Tilting Iron” set to open on June 10, followed by “The Sovereign Edge” on July 3.
Now in post, the saga will have a global scope, with an international cast and locations. It filmed in France, Morocco and the U.K., unfolding between London to Paris, Casablanca and Dakar, among other cities.
Led by Simon Abkarian in the towering role of General Charles de Gaulle, the ensemble period saga stars Benoît Magimel as Pierre Koenig, Mathieu Kassovitz as Francois Darlan, Niels Schneider as General Leclerc, and Simon Russell Beale portraying Winston Churchill and Campbell Scott stepping into the role of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Florian Lesieur and Anamaria Vartolomei, the César-winning star of Audrey Diwan’s “Happening” and Bong Joon-ho’s “Mickey 17,” embody the young faces of the Resistance. The cast is completed by Karim Leklou, Félix Kysyl, Thierry Lhermitte, Grégoire Colin, Kacey Mottet Klein, Tom Mison, Pip Torrens, Stephen Campbell Moore and Daniel Betts.
The saga is based on the book “De Gaulle: A Certain Idea of France” by Julian Jackson, one of the key reference works on de Gaulle and Free France; and explores De Gaulle’s complex relationship with Churchill, portrayed by Simon Russell Beale. Baudry penned the screenplay, adaptation and dialogue alongside Bérénice Vila. The movies reteam Pathé and Baudry, following “The Wolf’s Call,” a bold submarine film that struck a chord in 2019.
“De Gaulle” is an in-house production for Pathé on the heels of its French blockbuster “The Count of Monte Cristo,” an epic adventure film adapted from Alexandre Dumas’ classic which world premiered at Cannes in 2024 and struck box office gold in France where it sold nearly 10 million admissions. Jérôme Seydoux, the powerful chairman of Pathé who also runs France’s leading cinema chain, is producing the “De Gaulle” saga, with Pathé Films president Ardavan Safaee and Axelle Bouca.
The story is set in June 1940, when France was defeated by German forces and signed the armistice. “De Gaulle, an isolated, largely unknown general refuses to accept surrender. Without an army, without political backing and seemingly without hope, de Gaulle flees to London, driven by what the film describes as an “irrational conviction:” that France, his France, has not laid down arms. Against all odds, he seeks to to convince the world — and his own countrymen — that the battle for France is neither over nor lost,” the synopsis reads. The films will depict how resistance fighters, rebellious students and determined soldiers rose up in England, France and Africa to join the cause.
Baudry drew on his own background within the French diplomatic corps to depict the political labyrinth of Free France with authenticity, focusing on the power struggles, moral dilemmas and human fault lines that shaped modern Europe.
“I often wondered what kind of person it took to refuse to surrender in 1940 — to disobey their own government while devoting their life to France,” Baudry said. “Few people can do this. I became fascinated by them, so much so that I wanted to make not one film, but two.”
Safaee, meanwhile, described “De Gaulle” as a “resonant and deeply contemporary story of resistance and commitment.”
“Directed by Antonin Baudry, the two films intertwine the momentum of a gripping geopolitical thriller
with the emotional depth of a shared human journey,” Safaee said, adding that “Baudry’s films will immerse audiences in the decisive hours when women and men of the Resistance, alongside a leader faced with impossible choices, came together to help shape the course of history.”
Safaee noted the “powerful films pay tribute to their courage, solidarity, and moral resolve, capturing
the human stakes behind history in the making.”
Besides production, Pathé is handling theatrical and video distribution, as well as international sales, with co-producers including TF1 Films Production, Logical Content Ventures, Belvédère, Ness Films and Beside Productions, alongside Canal+, Disney+ and TF1.
“De Gaulle” is one of the several prestige epics on Pathé’s slate. The company is also developing “Dumas: Black Devil” directed by Ladj Ly, about the lesser-known story of Thomas Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie Dumas, who was born a Caribbean slave in 1762 and beat the odds by rising through the ranks to become a revolutionary French general.
Below is a poster for “De Gaulle.” It features a Cross of Lorraine, which “became a powerful emblem of the Free French Forces, symbolizing resistance, unity, courage, and an unbreakable spirit of freedom — a deliberate counter to the Nazi swastika,” Pathé said.
