Followed by a conversation with writer-director Gregg Araki
Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde) is LA's hottest artist—her erotic art is more popular than ever, and her reputation for sleeping with her studio assistants is an open secret. Enter Elliot (Cooper Hoffman), a dopey 20-something desperate for a job in the arts and, namely, to pay his rent. Soon after Erika hires Elliot, she propositions him for sex and introduces him to BDSM, catapulting him into a dizzying labyrinth of power dynamics in the bedroom and at the studio.
Gregg Araki's seminal Teen Apocalypse Trilogy (1993–97) transfixed a generation—reflecting the nihilism of American youth who grew up under Ronald Reagan, amid the threat of AIDS, and were really pissed off. Now, at 67, Araki's latest film shows how that '90s anger has shifted into a pervasive unease for Gen Z—economically and sexually—and the complications that arise when those two things collide. Never losing empathy for the characters or a sense of humor, Araki achieves the delicate balance of a raucous send-up of the art world, workplace dynamics, and sexual power in the way only a distinctive auteur can.
2026. Directed by Gregg Araki. Screenplay by Araki, Karley Sciortino. With Cooper Hoffman, Olivia Wilde, Chase Sui Wonders. DCP courtesy Magnolia Pictures. 90 min.
Tickets
$10 Hammer members | $20 general admission
Current members, check your email for your link to buy tickets, or contact membership@hammer.ucla.edu.
General admission tickets go on sale Monday, October 19 at 11 a.m.
Enhance your movie experience as a member! Hammer Members receive priority seating and half-off Contenders tickets—plus discounts at the museum store and Lulu restaurant.
ATTENDING THIS PROGRAM?
Ticketing: Limit 2 tickets per customer. Your seat(s) will be assigned to you when you pick up your ticket(s) at the box office. Box office opens at 6:30 p.m. Seats are assigned on a first come, first served basis. No late seating; any unclaimed tickets will be released at 7:20 p.m. No refunds and no exchanges. Post-screening guests are subject to change.
Member Benefit: Subject to availability, Hammer Members can choose their preferred seats. Members receive priority ticketing until 15 minutes before the program. Learn more about membership.
Parking: Self-parking is available under the museum. Rates are $9 for the first three hours with museum validation, and $3 for each additional 20 minutes, with a $30 daily maximum. There is a $9 flat rate after 5 p.m. on weekdays, and all day on weekends.
Press: If you are a member of the press and are interested in attending and covering the program, please email Santiago Pazos at spazos@hammer.ucla.edu for accommodations.
