Cannes director defends film festival after actor slams MeToo response

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent After being greeted with a seven-minute standing ovation on opening night of the Cannes Film Festival, Johnny Depp’s comeback movie “Jeanne du Barry,” directed by Maiwenn, has charmed French audiences after debuting in cinemas. The costume drama, which stars Depp as the French King Louis XV and marks his first leading role in three years, has been having a strong run at the French B.O., proving that the controversial star is still bankable. At least in France. The film was widely released by Le Pacte on 650 screens and has grossed nearly $4.1 million from more than 550,000 tickets sold in two weeks, according to Comscore France. Currently playing across 800 screens, the film got mixed reviews in Cannes, but still has the potential of selling up to 850,000 tickets (an estimated $6.4 million), according to Eric Marti at Comscore France.

Like father, like daughter. Lily-Rose Depp made a rare comment about dad Johnny Depp while attending the Cannes Film Festival weeks after her father received a standing ovation at the french event.

Lily-Rose Depp is one proud daughter!

Lily-Rose Depp is one proud daughter!ET's Rachel Smith spoke to Lily-Rose virtually from the Cannes Film Festival in the South of France Tuesday, where she said she couldn't be happier for her father, Johnny Depp, following the seven-minute standing ovation he received after the premiere of his new biographical drama, .The film marked the opening of the 76th annual event, and the  star's first leading role since his highly publicized defamation trial against his ex-wife, Amber Heard.The French-language film sees Johnny as King Louis XV. Set in the 18th century,  tells the story of Jeanne Bécu (Maïwenn), the daughter of an impoverished seamstress who rose through the Court of Louis XV and became his last official mistress.«I'm super happy for him.

for minutes of applause. So entrenched is this French farce that trade publications routinely time the euphoria and judge the response to the new films based on the length of the cheering at the Grand Théâtre Lumière. Cannes’ longest-ever roar? Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth,” which premiered there in 2006, at 22 minutes. This year’s fest is in full swing, and so is the ceaseless hand-slapping.Here are Cannes’ standing ovations so far, from triumphant to tepid.The most ecstatic response to a film so far at this year’s festival, which runs until May 27, was for Martin Scorsese’s latest drama. The historical movie from Apple and Paramount brings together two popular Scorsese stalwarts, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, plus last year’s Best Actor Oscar winner Brendan Fraser and Jesse Plemons.

With all the headlines dedicated to the #MeToo movement over the past few years, it can sometimes feel like the industry has made progress — certainly, enough to launch several biopics and television shows about its own misconduct. But this is still a time when “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” actress Adèle Haenel feels compelled to quit the French film industry in protest, and when the director of the Cannes Film Festival feels the need to say, out loud, that Cannes is not a “festival for rapists.” READ MORE: Cannes Director Says Event Is Not “A Festival For Rapists” Needless to say, there’s still work to be done, and it’s good that these conversations continue to happen – especially when they involve an icon of the French film industry, Marion Cotillard.

Johnny Depp’s appearance this week at Cannes Film Festival has sent the internet into overdrive, and not in a good way. The former Pirates of the Caribbean actor, 59, returned to the spotlight at Cannes earlier this week, hitting the red carpet for the premiere of his new film Jeanne du Barry, in which he plays King Louis XV.

If you thought Maïwenn’s Johnny Depp movie Jeanne du Barry arrived at Cannes with a lot of baggage, Catherine Corsini’s Homecoming didn’t spare in its ruffling of French media feathers with stories about harassment of workers on the pic’s set and a masturbation scene involving minors.

CANNES — Johnny Depp seemed back in full celebrity mode on Tuesday, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans before the premiere of the Cannes Film Festival’s opening film “Jeanne du Barry,” which marks the actor’s first major role since his high-profile defamation trial.

Johnny Depp’s new film.A social media campaign was launched earlier this week which accused the festival of “supporting predators” – it comes under the hashtag #CannesYouNot. The online opposition arose after the prestigious film festival was confirmed to be opening with Johnny Depp’s new film, Jeanne du Barry, this year.The 2023 instalment — the 76th edition of the festival — kicked off yesterday (May 16), although was on the receiving end of backlash due to its inclusion of the Pirates Of The Caribbean actor.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia is flying the flag at the Cannes Film Festival where the kingdom’s Cultural Development Fund officially unveiled two separate film sector funds worth a total of $180 million aimed at fostering the local film industry and attracting international industry players. At a breakfast event titled “A Billion Dollar Opportunity” Mohammed Bin Dayel, who is CEO of the Cultural Development Fund, and the fund’s chief strategy and business development officer Najla AlNomair announced an investment program with a budget of $80 million “that will target film and media production, distribution and infrastructure,” said Bin Dayel. He separately announced Saudi’s first film investment fund worth $100 million.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director The 2023 Cannes Film Festival is jam-packed with buzzy world premieres, from Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” to Wes Anderson’s “Asteroid City.” Todd Haynes is also back to unveil “May December,” featuring the A-list pairing of Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, while Disney is bringing Harrison Ford to the Croisette for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” New films from Pedro Almodovar, Jessica Hautner, Jonathan Glazer, Catherine Corsini, Hirokazu Kore-eda and more are also set to make their debuts at Cannes this year. Cannes is often seen as a launching pad for Oscar season. Warner Bros. in 2022 kicked off its lengthy awards run for Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” on the French Riviera, with the film going on to land eight Academy Award nominations, including best picture. Palme d’Or winner “Triangle of Sadness” also picked up Oscar nods for best picture, director and original screenplay. Two international film nominees, “Close” and “EO,” launched at last year’s festival, while “Aftersun” best actor nominee Paul Mescal got his awards start in the Directors Fortnight sidebar. All of this is to say the industry will be closely watching the buzz on all of this year’s world premieres.

CANNES (Reuters) -Johnny Depp seemed back in full celebrity mode on Tuesday, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans before the premiere of the Cannes Film Festival's opening film "Jeanne du Barry," which marks the actor's first major role since his high-profile defamation trial. Fans in the French Riviera city were seen hoisting signs that read "Congrats, Johnny" and "We are sorry" with a heart. The festival delivered on its glamorous reputation with a parade of stars including Mads Mikkelsen, a blue-haired Helen Mirren and John C.

Come again? Brie Larson appeared to be flustered and surprised when she was asked to weigh in on Johnny Depp’s presence at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

Johnny Depp is getting a lot of praise during his controversial appearance at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star, 59, made his return to the spotlight one year after his bombshell defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard.  Depp received applause from fans as he arrived at the red carpet around 7 p.m.

during his tawdry defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. On June 1, a jury awarded Depp a combined $15 million in damages after they found that Heard had defamed him in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed alleging spousal abuse.   Even if the jurors decided in Depp’s favor, the testimony was lurid and unflattering and neither notable came off blemish-free in the media frenzy. That sleazy spectacle arrived after another legal circus in 2020, when the actor lost a libel case in the UK against the Sun newspaper, which in 2018 had called him a “wife beater.”As a result of Heard’s allegations, Disney booted Depp in 2018 from future installments of the “Pirates” series, in which he played Captain Jack Sparrow.In 2020, Warner Bros.

Michael Douglas was among the many stars to hit the red carpet at Cannes for the opening night of the iconic French film festival.

Johnny Depp poses for photos at the premiere screening of his movie, Jeanne du Barry, at the opening ceremony of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday (May 16) in Cannes, France.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent If you thought Johnny Depp starring in a film might be a lightning rod of controversy, imagine the movie’s director spitting on a journalist. “Jeanne du Barry” will open the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday night, marking Depp’s return to the red carpet, following legal battles that have largely defined the actor for the past few years. Ahead of the film’s premiere, the director, French actor and filmmaker Maiwenn, admitted to assaulting a journalist by spitting on him. “She’s outspokenly anti-#MeToo and she made a gesture to please her world, and that’s why she bragged about it on TV. We could see a sort of pride that echoed that world,” journalist Edwy Plenel tells Variety in his first interview since the spitting incident. Plenel was referring to Maiwenn’s comments published by Paris Match in 2020, saying “It’s crazy how many stupidities they say these days! These women don’t like men, that’s clear, and they’re causing very serious collateral damages.” In that same interview she said “When I hear women complaining that men are only interested in their bottom, I tell them, ‘Enjoy it because it won’t last!'”

With Johnny Depp making his big screen return on the opening night of Cannes in Jeanne du Barry, after being shut out of Hollywood from battling ex-wife Amber Heard in the courts, Cannes Film Festival Juror Brie Larson was asked by a reporter at the jury presser as to whether she’ll see the actor’s movie Jeanne du Barry tonight.