Madonna, Scorsese and De Niro made Tribeca day three historic
From a Madonna world premiere to a Taxi Driver reunion, day three covered serious ground
Day three of the 2026 Tribeca Festival turned New York City into one of the busiest nights in the event’s history. Spread across multiple venues, June 5 brought world premieres, a landmark anniversary screening, a Sean Penn sit-down and a full day of storytelling panels to a city that was clearly paying attention.
Madonna opens at the Beacon Theatre
The Beacon Theatre hosted the world premiere of Confessions II, a cinematic presentation tied to Madonna’s forthcoming album. The event drew a notable crowd including David Banda, Lourdes Leon, Mercy James, Feid, Debi Mazar, Questlove and Tommy Dorfman. After the premiere, Madonna sat down with Anderson Cooper for an exclusive conversation that kept the spotlight firmly on one of music’s longest-running figures.
Taxi Driver turns 50 at OKX Theater
Across town at the OKX Theater at BMCC, Tribeca marked the 50th anniversary of Taxi Driver with a special screening attended by Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Paul Schrader and Jodie Foster. W. Kamau Bell moderated the conversation alongside Simon Pegg and others connected to the film’s legacy. The evening also included the world premiere of The Revisionist, with Alison Brie and Tom Sturridge in attendance.
New films debut at SVA Theatre
The SVA Theatre hosted two world premieres. Emilia Clarke and Édgar Ramírez attended the debut of Next Life, directed by Drake Doremus. Vera Farmiga also came out for the premiere of The Leader, joined by a large ensemble cast including Tim Blake Nelson and Grace Caroline Currey.
Sean Penn and storytelling at Spring Studios
Spring Studios served as the festival’s main hub for conversations and panels throughout the day. Sean Penn sat down with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins for a Tribeca Talks session that covered his work as both an actor and filmmaker. The venue also hosted actress Myha’la for a Luminaries segment within the Storytelling Summit.
Other Summit sessions throughout the day explored topics including AI and the future of filmmaking, documentary funding, late night television writing with members of Late Night with Seth Meyers, and the craft of building a story from first concept to finished project. A documentary on Jean-Michel Basquiat also screened at Spring Studios, attended by his sisters Jeanine and Lisane Basquiat alongside director Viridiana Lieberman.
Shorts programming ran across three blocks covering political storytelling, genre fiction and love narratives, with titles screening back to back throughout the evening.
A full night across New York
Village East by Angelika and AMC 19th St. East 6 rounded out the day with additional premieres including Cotton Fever with Sosie Bacon and Kyle Gallner, The Tropic Sun and His Eyes with Dominique Thorne and Naturi Naughton-Lewis, and Via Negativa featuring Young Mazino. The breadth of programming across venues gave the festival a citywide presence that stretched well into the night.
Leave a Reply