A release date has finally been set for The History of Sound.
The upcoming romantic drama, directed by Oliver Hermanus (Mary & George), follows the relationship between David and Lionel, who meet in 1917 as students at the Boston Music Conservatory. Three years later, after World War I, they travel through rural Maine to record the folk songs of their countrymen.
The film is based on the Pushcart Prize-winning novel from Ben Shattuck, a collection of 12 short stories that are set across three centuries and explores generational patterns of love and loss.
David and Lionel are respectively played by Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, who have both received acclaim in recent years for their roles in the queer dramas All of Us Strangers (2023) and Challengers (2024). O’Connor also memorably starred as a closeted sheep farmer in God’s Own Country (2017).
The History of Sound premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where it was nominated for the Palme d’Or and received positive reviews from critics. It is scheduled to be released in cinemas on 12 September.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Mescal noted how fortunate he felt to be part of The History of Sound, acknowledging how often beloved projects fail to materialise after years of effort: “How many times do you hear people who really try and get something made over five, 10, 15 years, and it just falls away?
“I remember feeling very lucky. Like, We have to enjoy this. Because we’ll come across other opportunities in our life where we love a script as much as this, and we just don’t get to get it made.”
The Gladiator II star went on to gush about his chemistry with O’Connor, revealing that he brought out a “childlike version” of himself, and that he hadn’t “felt that kind of degree of boyishness in myself for a long time”.
Hermanus also revealed that the film includes sex scenes, though they are sparse, as he didn’t want to frame them as a “transgression”. He stressed that he didn’t want to draw attention to the fact that “these two men are taking the risk of being sexual” in a pre-progressive era.
“Ben wrote it in a way where there was no hesitation, no moment of fear. For me, the sex scene is when Lionel is walking around David’s apartment the morning after [their first encounter], and he’s smelling everything and sitting everywhere,” he explained. “He’s absorbing the energy of this person.”
Mescal added: “There is a kind of real sense of companionship, and the joy and loss that comes with the presence and absence of that. It’s not just about sex and the intensity of falling in love. It’s deeper than that.”
The History of Sound also stars Chris Cooper (Little Women), Molly Price (Third Watch), Raphael Sbarge (Once Upon a Time), Hadley Robinson (Moxie), Emma Canning (Dune: Prophecy), Brianna Middleton (The Inheritance) and Gary Raymond (The Cedar Tree).
As we wait for the release of an official trailer, check out the first stills below.
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