Denmark’s Oscar committee has selected May el-Toukhy’s Kvinde ukendt as the country’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 2027 Academy Awards, a film that already had a guaranteed place in the race.
DR reports that the committee announced its choice on the morning of September 25, 2026. The decision was unanimous, and the film was picked ahead of the two other shortlisted titles, Dobbeltfejl and Hjem.
New Academy rules mean a non-American film that wins the top prize at one of six major festivals enters the international feature category without a national nomination. Those festivals are Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto, Busan and Sundance. Kvinde ukendt won the main prize in Venice earlier in September, and lead actor Mathilde Arcel was named best actress.
According to DR, the Danish Film Institute confirmed that the producer could have submitted the film directly because of the Venice prize. The institute said a film selected outside the national process would stand weaker, since it would lack the institute’s backing during six months of international promotion.
A shortlist of three
Film critic Ann Lind Andersen of What2Watch told DR that Denmark could in principle have doubled its chances by choosing another title. She added that passing over Kvinde ukendt could have signaled less than full support for the Venice winner. She also noted that running two Danish Oscar campaigns would be very expensive.
Tine Fischer, CEO of the Danish Film Institute and chair of the Oscar committee, said the committee’s main task is to pick the film with the greatest chance of success. As stated by Fischer to DR, Denmark has a very strong candidate this year.
Deadline reports the selection as a Golden Lion winner entering the 99th Academy Awards. Screen Daily confirms the Danish selection and notes that the Venice Golden Lion was central to the film’s Oscar eligibility.
Andersen told DR that the rule change is intended to protect award winning directors who criticize their own governments. She pointed to countries such as Russia and Iran, where authorities may decline to submit a prize winning film for an Oscar.
All submitted films will now be viewed by a committee in the United States. A shortlist of 15 titles will be published on December 15, 2026, and the five final nominees on January 21, 2027. The Academy Awards ceremony takes place on March 14, 2027.
Andersen assessed that Kvinde ukendt has a strong chance of reaching the final five. She named the Spanish French film La bola negra, which features Penélope Cruz, as an emerging favorite in the category. The Danish premiere of Kvinde ukendt is set for February 4, 2027.
