Cannes Film Festival kicks off with Johnny Depp, ‘Jeanne du Barry’ and plenty to talk about
Associated PressCANNES, France — The Cannes Film Festival red carpet sprang to life Tuesday with the premiere of the Louis XV period drama “Jeanne du Barry,” with Johnny Depp, as the French Riviera movie pageant launched a star-studded and potentially controversy-rife 76th edition. “Jeanne du Barry,” directed and co-starring Maïwenn, has been billed as Depp’s comeback — though his prominent presence at Cannes has been hotly debated. Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund, a two-time Palme winner who last year won for the social satire “The Triangle of Sadness,” is presiding over a jury including Dano, Larson, Argentine filmmaker Damián Szifron, Afghan director Atiq Rahimi, French actor Denis Ménochet, Moroccan filmmaker Maryam Tourzani, Zambian-Welsh director Rungano Nyoni and French director Julia Ducournau, who in 2019 became the second female filmmaker to win the Palme d’Or for “Titane.” Östlund, 49, wondered whether he might have been handed the opportunity a decade too soon. “If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldn’t be here talking about it.” ___ Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP ___ For more coverage of this year’s Cannes Film Festival, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/cannes-film-festival