Josh O'Connor needs his mom's help to steal art in The Mastermind trailer

The Kelly Reichardt project debuted in competition at Cannes in May.

By Emma Keates  |  August 21, 2025 | 10:43am
Photo: MUBI
Film News The Mastermind
Josh O'Connor needs his mom's help to steal art in The Mastermind trailer

Josh O’Connor’s character in The Mastermind would do well to take some thievery lessons from his La Chimera tombarolo. While the latter was preternaturally gifted at stealing precious artifacts, the former is… not. He can’t even do it without a loan from his mom (Hope Davis), which he somehow manages to convince her is for a “real… life changing opportunity for me.” “Real” is dubious, but “life changing” is right on the money.  

Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind follows JB Mooney (O’Connor), an unemployed, ’70s era carpenter who tries his hand at becoming an art thief. It doesn’t go great; in the trailer, it’s abundantly clear that JB does not have the necessary skillset to pull off a life of crime. His first big heist goes haywire, naturally, leading his life to “unravel,” per the film’s logline. 

The Mastermind also stars Alana Haim as JB’s disappointed wife Terri. (At one point, she reacts with genuine shock to the idea that her husband has “things to do”). Gabby Hoffman, John Magaro, and Bill Camp also appear. The film debuted in competition at Cannes, where it went head to head with another upcoming O’Connor film, Oliver Hermanus’ The History Of Sound. 

The A.V. Club praised the project after it screened at the festival. “Once The Mastermind settles in your soul, it’s there to stay—an invasive species of Reichardtian genre-play that wiggles its way into your psyche, takes root, and leaves you wanting more of something you know you won’t be getting more of anytime soon, which makes the film even more of a treasure,” Luke Hicks wrote in his review. 

JB will have the chance to steal a little part of your psyche as well when The Mastermind premieres October 17 in theaters. 

 
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