The Cannes Film Festival has begun! On the opening day, a member of the main competition jury, noted screenwriter Paul Laverty, ended the press conference by saying that Hollywood should be ashamed of the way it has treated stars like Susan Sarandon, Javier Bardem and Mark Ruffalo for opposing Israel’s war in Gaza. (Also read: Film Heritage Foundation brings 4K restoration of Malayalam classic Amma Ariyan to Cannes Film Festival)
Why jury member lashed out at Hollywood?
Interestingly, the image of Susan Sarandon adorns the festival as its official poster this year. The image is taken from the film Thelma and Louise, a cult Hollywood release that also starred Geena Davis.
At the end of the press conference, Paul said, “Can I just leave one tiny thing? The Cannes Film Festival has a wonderful poster. Yes, and isn’t it fascinating to see some of them like Susan Sarandon, Javier Bardem, Mark Ruffalo blacklisted because of their views in opposing the murder of women and children in Gaza? Shame on Hollywood people who do that. My respect and total solidarity to them. They’re the best of us, I look up to them.”
He then added, “I just hope we don’t get bombed now, because we’ve got this poster in Cannes.” He also made an impassioned plea for filmmakers not to shy away from politics “when madmen lead the blind”, quoting Shakespeare’s King Lear.
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Susan Sarandon had made headlines a few months ago for revealing how she was blacklisted for her views. She was speaking in Spain ahead of receiving the International Goya award in recognition of her career. She said: “I was fired by my agency, specifically for marching and speaking out about Gaza, for asking for a ceasefire.” Sarandon is an Academy Award-winning actor.
The Cannes Film Festival will take place from May 12 to May 23. South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook has been named president of the jury for the main competition. He is best known for his film Oldboy. His last directorial release was No Other Choice in 2025.
No Indian film has been selected at Cannes this year. Only the Malayalam film Amma Ariyan will be screened as part of the Cannes Classics section. Film Heritage Foundation will bring the 4K restoration of the John Abraham classic to screen. Meanwhile, Alia Bhatt, Aishwarya Rai and Tara Sutaria are some of the Indian stars who are set to make a splash on the red carpet.