One month ahead of the opening, the 78th Cannes Film Festival has revealed its official selection, sparking global anticipation. Big names, fresh talents, and high-stakes premieres will soon light up the Croisette.
Who will walk the red carpet alongside Robert De Niro, Tom Cruise, and Juliette Binoche? One month before opening night, the organizers of the 78th Cannes Film Festival unveiled its much-anticipated official selection on Thursday.
Producers and filmmakers from around the world rushed to finalize post-production on their films before the press conference led by festival president Iris Knobloch and general delegate Thierry Frémaux at 11:00 AM (09:00 GMT).
As always, speculation runs high. Among the contenders is director Terrence Malick, 81, more mystical than ever, who could be vying for another Palme d’Or, 14 years after The Tree of Life, with a long-gestating film inspired by biblical stories.
Other Cannes veterans may also return. Jim Jarmusch (Broken Flowers, Dead Man, Only Lovers Left Alive) might present a new film at 72, starring Cate Blanchett and Adam Driver. Wes Anderson, 55, also returns with another ensemble feature packed with stars like Benicio Del Toro, Tom Hanks, and Scarlett Johansson.
Johansson herself may bring a fresh breeze by presenting her directorial debut at age 40, Eleanor The Great. She’s not alone: Kristen Stewart, 34, has also just completed her first feature film.
New Blood
American horror master Ari Aster, 38, known for chilling works like Hereditary and Midsommar, could inject new blood into Cannes with a project starring Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone—his first film ever selected for the festival.
Three French women directors are also in the spotlight: Julia Ducournau, Palme d’Or winner for the ultra-gory Titane, returns with a new film featuring Golshifteh Farahani and Tahar Rahim. Rebecca Zlotowski (Other People’s Children, An Easy Girl) presents a drama starring Jodie Foster. Alice Winocour focuses on Paris Fashion Week, starring Angelina Jolie.
The festival may also include Nouvelle Vague, a comedy described as a making-of Breathless, "in the style and spirit of Godard," directed by Richard Linklater (Boyhood).
As usual, about 20 films will compete for the Palme d’Or, hoping to follow 2024’s winner, Anora.
Juliette Binoche will preside over the jury. One of France’s most internationally recognized stars, she’s known for her outspoken views and will lead the festival during a tense time marked by worries over a Trump presidency and ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
On screen, filmmakers like Kirill Serebrennikov, Andrey Zvyagintsev, or young Kantemir Balagov could represent the voice of Russian cinema in exile.
Binoche, also a leading voice in the MeToo movement, could use the Cannes platform to speak again on the issue, after testifying before the French parliamentary commission on abuse in the cultural sector.
Tom Cruise and De Niro
That commission’s president, Green Party MP Sandrine Rousseau, urged Cannes to become "a place where mentalities shift" regarding sexual violence in cinema, as she presented her final report.
On the red carpet side, some stars are already confirmed. Tom Cruise will attend right after the opening to present the latest Mission: Impossible installment out of competition.
The film, expected to conclude the blockbuster franchise, is one of the year’s most anticipated releases and a highlight of the fortnight—three years after Cruise landed on the Croisette by helicopter for Top Gun: Maverick.
He follows in the footsteps of another American legend, Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, The Godfather Part II), who will receive an honorary Palme d’Or during the opening ceremony.
That ceremony—and the closing one—will be hosted by French actor and comedian Laurent Lafitte and broadcast on Brut and France Télévisions.
With AFP
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