Flesh Impact (2026): Cast, Story and Release Details

Prepared by Movies Dock Editorial

Flesh Impact is a 17-minute American drama written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Set in a small New York City blackbox theater, it follows a mysterious older woman whose audition gradually raises questions about identity, memory and the life others think they know.

Flesh Impact is a short drama written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. The 17-minute film centers on an unusual audition at a small blackbox theater in New York City, where an older woman’s account of her acting experience begins to reveal more than expected.

Dakota Johnson and Ellen Burstyn are both credited as Marilyn Monroe, while Peter Sarsgaard and Sepideh Moafi also appear in the cast. The film is listed as a United States production in English and is dated September 9, 2026.

Flesh Impact movie details

Story without spoilers

At the heart of Flesh Impact is a mysterious old woman who arrives at a small blackbox theater in New York City to audition for a play. As she explains her qualifications and recounts her experience as an actor, the conversation brings hidden aspects of her identity into focus.

The premise also points to a tension between personal memory and public perception. The woman’s story challenges assumptions about who she is and what her life has meant, while keeping the film’s central revelations unstated.

What to expect

Flesh Impact is identified as a drama and a short film, with a compact 17-minute runtime. Its single audition-based premise suggests a tightly contained story built around dialogue, identity and the gap between an individual’s own account and the misconceptions held about them.

The supplied keywords include memory and Marilyn Monroe, and the casting credits connect both Dakota Johnson and Ellen Burstyn with Monroe. Beyond that premise and context, specific details about the film’s tone, visual approach, ending and structure are not provided.

Cast and creative team

Maggie Gyllenhaal serves as both director and writer of Flesh Impact. Dakota Johnson and Ellen Burstyn are each credited as Marilyn Monroe. Peter Sarsgaard and Sepideh Moafi are also listed in the cast, without character names supplied.

• Dakota Johnson as Marilyn Monroe
• Ellen Burstyn as Marilyn Monroe
• Peter Sarsgaard
• Sepideh Moafi

Release and production context

Flesh Impact is a 17-minute drama from the United States of America, with English as its spoken language. The supplied release date is September 9, 2026, and its status is listed as Released. Production companies credited are Innocean USA, Superprime Films and The Cut.

Production companies: Innocean USA, Superprime Films, The Cut

Movies Dock view

With its short runtime and theater-audition setting, Flesh Impact focuses on a concentrated encounter rather than a broad, location-heavy narrative. Its premise places identity, memory and public misunderstanding at the center, while the credited cast and filmmakers give the project a clear connection to Marilyn Monroe as part of its subject matter.

Film data:
TMDB · IMDb