Emmanuel Macchia makes the attraction in Coward believable without forcing it. We see promise in his restraint, but the writing leaves Pierre too hard to know; a fuller part would tell us more about what this actor can do.
Fi1m perspective
In Coward (2026), Emmanuel Macchia’s Pierre watches Francis, played by Valentin Campagne, as though wanting to be close has not made approaching him any easier. Those looks do much of the work in making the romance believable. We were moved by their hesitant attraction, because both actors make the wish for closeness clear without pretending the men know how to proceed. Macchia gives us enough to recognise the feeling, even when Pierre himself remains difficult to understand.
Macchia came to director Lukas Dhont’s film without previous acting training or screen experience and spent three months preparing. For a debut, the restraint is encouraging: he does not force each change of feeling into an obvious expression. Close-ups suit this performance because small shifts can register without much dialogue. His strongest work here depends on Campagne, whose responses give those looks someone to reach. We believe these two want to be together, and that is a considerable part of what the film needs from them.
Yet Francis is the more readily understood character, and Macchia cannot wholly compensate for how little the writing supplies about Pierre. When the film asks for equal concern for both men, the difference becomes a problem. There is a point at which watching someone quietly tells us no more about him, however carefully the actor holds our attention. We would resist treating every unreadable look as evidence of depth. Macchia’s commitment deserves credit, but it cannot give Pierre the fuller character the script has withheld.
The surrounding film is uneven, with scattered storytelling and repetitive interludes, so our interest in Macchia comes with a substantial reservation about the material. The romance remains the chief reason to stay, and he has a substantial share in that. A debut also gives us little basis for declaring what he always does, or which kinds of part he can carry. Dhont has found something worth watching in his reserve, without giving us enough to establish its limits. We would be interested to see Macchia in a more talkative part, where quietness cannot do quite so much of the work.
Biography
Emmanuel Macchia is a Belgian actor. He made his screen debut playing Pierre in the 2026 film Coward, directed by Lukas Dhont.
Born in Charleroi, Macchia was studying landscape architecture in Gembloux when he was discovered by Dhont during a casting search. He had no prior acting experience. His performance in the film earned him a shared Best Actor prize at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival with co-star Valentin Campagne.
