‘De Noche’: Everything We Know About Pedro Pascal’s Gay Romance Movie
Pedro Pascal is officially returning to the romance genre. Instead of playing a rich investor caught in a love triangle as he did in Materialists, the actor will appear as a 1930s cop with a younger male lover (Danny Ramirez).
“This story, with Pedro Pascal and Danny Ramirez in the two leads, arises out of an era — all too relevant to our own — of domestic corruption, racial exploitation and global terror,” director Todd Haynes said, per Variety. “But it emerges as a testament to the inexplicable powers of desire and love to survive and overcome even the most crippling of human barriers.”
Swooon has all of the latest details about Haynes’ De Noche. Keep reading for the cast announced so far, plot, and more.
When is De Noche coming out?
There’s no release date yet, but according to Variety, filming kicks off in March 2026.
Who is in the De Noche cast?
Pascal has taken over a role that once belonged to Joaquin Phoenix. After helping develop the screenplay and bringing it to Killer Films, the Oscar winner dropped out five days before shooting was supposed to begin in Mexico. Variety had a source close to the production who claimed that Phoenix got “cold feet” about the project. The outlet also said entire sets had been built in Guadalajara when the actor called it quits.
“What happened this summer was tough,” Haynes said at the Marrakech Film Festival last December. “But the film itself and the script itself may resurrect in a different form someday.”
Shane Anthony Sinclair / Getty Images
Indeed, it has. Ramirez was on board to play Phoenix’s love interest before he exited, and the Captain America: Brave New World star has remained on board now that the production’s wheels are turning again. His character is a boarding school teacher.
De Noche is Ramirez and Pascal’s third time working together, after The Last of Us Season 2 and Avengers: Doomsday. “Pedro and I are going to work for a really long time. I love him,” Ramirez told Screenrant. “He’s a star in one way, but he’s also an artist, and incredibly raw and vulnerable in his approach to everything, so I’m excited for our careers in working together.”
View this post on Instagram
Who is making De Noche?
Haynes most recently directed Netflix’s May December, which starred Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman. He’s also penned the script alongside longtime collaborator Jon Raymond.
On the production team are Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler from Killer Films, who happened to work on Materialists. Vachon has joined a number of Haynes’s projects, including Far From Heaven, I’m Not There, and Carol.
What is De Noche about?
De Noche follows a gay couple that’s become a target of Los Angeles’ corrupt political machine, while the rest of the world is also on the brink of war. Pascal’s cop and his younger lover are forced to flee to Mexico.
Haynes described De Noche as a “love story between two men set in the ’30s that has explicit sexual content,” according to a 2023 interview with Variety. At the time, it was set to have an NC-17 rating and a relationship that would “challenge” viewers.
Is there a De Noche trailer?
Not yet! There likely won’t be any footage until late 2026 or early 2027 at the earliest. Check back for updates!
De Noche, In Theaters, TBA
