It's been five years since Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson shared a screen and broke our hearts in Marriage Story. The casting reunites Johansson and Driver, for which they both earned Academy Award nominations back in 2019. Now, with the official trailer for Paper Tiger landing this week, the pair are back together — and this time they've brought Miles Teller along for the ride.
Queens, 1986: A Family on the Brink
Set in 1986 Queens, New York, the film centres on brothers Gary (Driver), an ex-cop, and Isaac (Teller), an engineer, who become entangled in a scheme that ends up involving the Russian mafia — a plan that threatens to upend their chances at the American Dream, fray bonds, and put their entire family at dangerous risk. Johansson plays Isaac's wife, who has her own turmoil.
Gray has said the story is loosely based on his own family's encounter with the Russian mafia in 1980s New York City. The writer-director follows Armageddon Time with a semi-fictionalised return to his family life in mid-1980s Queens. It's an intensely personal project, then — and one that Gray has clearly been building towards for some time.
Speaking to Vulture, Gray described his approach as "a little bit more operatic," incorporating Hitchcockian elements into the family drama.
A Cannes Triumph Already in the Bag
The official trailer arrives with Paper Tiger already carrying serious festival pedigree. The film had its world premiere in competition for the Palme d'Or at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival on 16 May, where it received a ten-minute standing ovation.
"Superbly crafted by Gray, who knows how to twist a crime-genre tale into something fresh and pulse-pounding." — Deadline's Pete Hammond, reviewing the film at Cannes
Paper Tiger competed for the Palme d'Or and is already picking up early Oscar buzz — and one look at the new trailer makes it easy to see why, with three of Hollywood's biggest stars delivering standout performances.
Thirty years after his directorial debut Little Odessa, Gray marks his return to Cannes with Paper Tiger, his fifth film in competition at the festival. The critically acclaimed filmmaker has yet to take home a Cannes prize — but awards season is a different battlefield entirely, and Paper Tiger looks very much like his best shot yet.
The Cast That Could Make History
Initial plans were for Anne Hathaway and Jeremy Strong to appear in the film, but scheduling conflicts caused both actors to drop out. Gray regrouped with Johansson and Teller — and, if early reviews are anything to go by, the recasting paid off handsomely. Expertly directed and thematically heavier than initially meets the eye, the film is being called a strong return to form for the American director after Armageddon Time.
"Cinema needs you more than ever. This is a very important time, and Cannes is so important for that reason." — James Gray, addressing the audience at the Paper Tiger Cannes premiere
Cinematographer Joaquín Baca-Asay shot the film on 35mm, marking his third collaboration with Gray. The craftsmanship, then, is very much old-school — entirely in keeping with a director whose instincts remain stubbornly, brilliantly classical.
When Can You See It?
Paper Tiger is gearing up for a 13 November limited release in the heart of awards season, but first the New York-set film is booked to open the New York Film Festival at the end of September. Neon holds North American distribution rights. With the official trailer now out in the world, the awards conversation is well and truly under way — and Driver, Johansson and Teller will be names to watch all the way through to the spring.
