Ishaan Khatter recently graced the opening night of the Biarritz Film Festival – Nouvelles Vagues, serving as a member of the international jury. The launch took place on France’s scenic Basque coast during a peak summer heatwave, attracting an impressive crowd of Hollywood celebrities and acclaimed European filmmakers. Now celebrating its fourth year, the six-day festival is fully committed to championing next-generation talent. The diverse, international committee is spearheaded by American actor and filmmaker Kristen Stewart, who serves as the jury president.
Ishaan Khatter joins Kristen Stewart-led jury
Several photos from the event have gone viral on social media where Ishaan Khatter is seen posing with Kristen Stewart. Joining them on this panel are Canadian actor Whitney Peak, French actor-director Raphaël Quenard, French filmmaker Nathan Ambrosioni, actor Suzy Bemba, Italian director Carolina Cavalli, and British actor Esmé Creed-Miles.
Following the opening ceremony, the highlight of the night belonged to French icon Marion Cotillard, who stepped onto the stage to honour the legendary Isabelle Huppert with a well-deserved lifetime achievement award.
Sharing a carousel of photos on his Instagram on Thursday, Ishaan Khatter wrote, “In Biarritz with the coolest gang on jury duty. Replenishing my cinematic appetite 😊 Nouvelles Vagues baby. Viva cinema.”
Ishaan’s global connect
Ishaan’s global acting career took off right from his 2018 acting debut in Beyond The Clouds, which was helmed by the Iranian director Majid Majidi. Shortly after, he secured a prominent role alongside Tabu in Mira Nair’s 2020 British television adaptation, A Suitable Boy.
He continued to expand his international footprint with a brief cameo in the star-studded 2021 Hollywood feature Don’t Look Up, sharing a project with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence. In 20224, Ishaan went onto star in six-episode Netflix series The Perfect Couple alongside Nicole Kidman.
Most recently, his 2025 film Homebound achieved major critical acclaim, earning selection as India’s official submission to the Academy Awards and successfully making the final shortlist.
What’s next for Ishaan?
Ishaan Khatter is set to headline two major upcoming projects: a comedy film titled Jugaadu and the second season of his Netflix show, The Royals.
Jugaadu is directed by Gullak fame Palash Vaswani, and is produced by Tips Films and Baweja Studios. Touted as a laugh-out-loud entertainer, the film introduces Punjabi actress Tania to Hindi cinema and features an ensemble cast including Abhishek Banerjee, Jameel Khan, and Vaibhav Raj Gupta. Production officially kicked off in Punjab in May 2026.