Steve Bannon to Attend Venice Film Festival Premiere of Documentary About Him

By Nick Vivarelli

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – After being dropped as a participant by The New Yorker Festival former top Trump advisor Steve Bannon is expected tomorrow on the Venice Film Festival’s red carpet for the world premiere of “American Dharma,” the documentary about him directed by Errol Morris.

Bannon, who will not be doing press at the festival, is currently in Venice and is expected to attend the gala screening of the doc on the Lido tomorrow. The festival has confirmed that Bannon will probably attend the premiere, but not as part of its official delegation.

There was never a plan for Bannon to attend the press conference, according to the doc’s publicist.

“American Dharma,” which is launching from Venice out-of-competition, stems from a sit-down between the alt-right maven and Morris who previously turned his cameras on such controversial figures as Donald Rumsfeld (“The Unknown Known”) and Robert McNamara (“The Fog of War”).

The 95-minute doc, based on five days of interviews filmed in the Boston area, will segue from Venice to the Toronto and New York Film Festivals.

In “American Dharma” Morris questions Bannon on his background, belief system, his worldview, his current feelings on President Trump, and how films such as Henry King’s “Twelve O’Clock High,” John Ford’s “The Searchers,” and Orson Welles’ “Chimes At Midnight” became part of Bannon’s understanding of the world,” according to promotional materials.

The director’s contention is that even for those who disagree with Bannon, ignoring him is a dangerous course of action.