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George Lucas to Receive Honorary Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival

George Lucas arrives at the premiere of "Solo: A Star Wars Story" at El Capitan Theatre on Thursday, May 10, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP)
George Lucas arrives at the premiere of "Solo: A Star Wars Story" at El Capitan Theatre on Thursday, May 10, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP)
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George Lucas to Receive Honorary Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival

George Lucas arrives at the premiere of "Solo: A Star Wars Story" at El Capitan Theatre on Thursday, May 10, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP)
George Lucas arrives at the premiere of "Solo: A Star Wars Story" at El Capitan Theatre on Thursday, May 10, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP)

George Lucas will receive an honorary Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival next month, festival organizers announced Tuesday.

Lucas will be honored at the closing ceremony to the 77th French film festival on May 25. He joins a short list of those to receive honorary Palmes. Last year, Harrison Ford, a regular leading man for Lucas in “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones,” was awarded one. Other recent recipients include Michael Douglas, Tom Cruise, Forest Whitaker and Jodie Foster.

“The Festival de Cannes has always held a special place in my heart,” Lucas said in a statement. “I was surprised and elated when my first film, ‘THX-1138,’ was selected to be shown in a new program for first time directors called the Directors’ Fortnight. Since then, I have returned to the festival on many occasions in a variety of capacities as a writer, director and producer. I am truly honored by this special recognition which means a great deal to me.”

The Cannes Film Festival runs May 14-25. The closing ceremony, during which the festival’s top prize, the Palme d’Or, will be awarded to one of the films in competition, will be broadcast in France on France Télévisions and streamed on Brut.

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Future of Cinema Clouded by Uncertainty, Venice Jury Chief Huppert Says

The 81st Venice Film Festival Jury member Isabelle Huppert poses during a photocall on the day of the opening ceremony of the 81st Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy, August 28, 2024. (Reuters)
The 81st Venice Film Festival Jury member Isabelle Huppert poses during a photocall on the day of the opening ceremony of the 81st Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy, August 28, 2024. (Reuters)
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Future of Cinema Clouded by Uncertainty, Venice Jury Chief Huppert Says

The 81st Venice Film Festival Jury member Isabelle Huppert poses during a photocall on the day of the opening ceremony of the 81st Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy, August 28, 2024. (Reuters)
The 81st Venice Film Festival Jury member Isabelle Huppert poses during a photocall on the day of the opening ceremony of the 81st Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy, August 28, 2024. (Reuters)

Cinema has been weakened in recent years and its survival cannot be taken for granted, French actress Isabelle Huppert said on Wednesday as she took charge of the main jury at the Venice Film Festival.

The 11-day event draws together film-makers from around the world, giving them an invaluable opportunity to promote work that might otherwise not gain global prominence.

But beyond the Venice Lido's glamorous red carpet, movie veterans worry about the future of the industry: box office sales have not yet recovered from the COVID pandemic, raising questions about the long-term financial viability of movies.

"What concerns us all is that cinema continues to live on as much as possible. We know that it has been weakened in recent times," Huppert said at the traditional news conference to mark the start of the world's oldest film festival.

"I am not a director, I am only an actress, but we know what it represents in terms of courage, endurance, solitude, determination, to ... make a film," she added, saying her goal was to help cinema keep going "for as long as possible".

"But that's why a festival like Venice exists, it's like an ecosystem that is more necessary than ever to proclaim these values. So I'm really happy to be here," Huppert said.

Huppert, 71, has appeared in over 120 films and has won the best actress award twice at Venice, in 1988 and 1995. She and her family also run two small art house cinemas in Paris.

Global cinema box office takings are estimated to have hit almost $34 billion in 2023, according to data from Gower Street Analytics, an increase of 30.5% on 2022, but still 15% below average annual returns from 2017-2019, before COVID hit.

However, sales have declined again this year in the United States - the biggest movie market in the world, setting alarm bells ringing.

US director Debra Granik, who is the head of the jury for Venice's more experimental Horizons section this year, thanked Huppert for addressing the "elephant in the room".

"That's why we all showed up here because we want to see this art form thrive,” Granik said.

The Venice festival opens on Wednesday night with the world premiere of Tim Burton's "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice", which is being shown out of competition. The event ends on Sept. 7 when Huppert will announce who has won the top Golden Lion award.