Two-time Palme Winner Ruben Ostlund to Head Cannes Jury

Ruben Östlund poses with his second Palme d'Or as the 75th Cannes Film Festival wrapped up on Saturday. Mehdi Chebil
Ruben Östlund poses with his second Palme d'Or as the 75th Cannes Film Festival wrapped up on Saturday. Mehdi Chebil
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Two-time Palme Winner Ruben Ostlund to Head Cannes Jury

Ruben Östlund poses with his second Palme d'Or as the 75th Cannes Film Festival wrapped up on Saturday. Mehdi Chebil
Ruben Östlund poses with his second Palme d'Or as the 75th Cannes Film Festival wrapped up on Saturday. Mehdi Chebil

Swedish director Ruben Ostlund, a two-time winner of the Palme d'Or, will be jury president at this year's Cannes Film Festival in May, organizers announced Tuesday.

Ostlund, 48, won the festival's top prize last year for "Triangle of Sadness", which left audiences squirming over its biting exploration of class divisions on a cruise ship, and extended display of extreme sea sickness.

The film, which stars Woody Harrelson as a drunken Marxist captain, has also earned him three nominations at next month's Oscars -- for best picture, best director and best original screenplay.

Ostlund also won the Palme five years earlier for "The Square", with a similarly cringe-inducing look at the art world, AFP said.

In a statement, Ostlund said he was "happy, proud and humbled to be entrusted with the honor" of leading the jury, which comes exactly 50 years after fellow Swede Ingrid Bergman had the role.

It is the third time a two-time Palme winner has led the jury in Cannes, following Francis Ford Coppola and Emir Kusturica, and the first time it has gone to someone the year after they won.

The selection of films is due to be announced next month, along with the other members of the jury.

Ostlund has become known for his scathing insights into the embarrassing foibles of Western middle classes.

He first gained international attention with 2014's "Force Majeure" about a father on a ski trip who rescues his mobile phone before his children during an avalanche.

It won the runner-up Jury Prize in the secondary Un Certain Regard section at Cannes.

Three years later, he went straight to the top, winning the Palme d'Or for "The Square", still set in Sweden but featuring US actor Elisabeth Moss and Britain's Dominic West.

After his victory last year, Ostlund said his goal with audiences was "to entertain them, to (make them) ask themselves questions, to go out after the screening and have something to talk about."



Screen Actors Guild Awards Cancel Live Nominations Announcement Due to Los Angeles Wildfires

A general view of the carpet at the 30th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, Feb. 24, 2024, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. (AP)
A general view of the carpet at the 30th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, Feb. 24, 2024, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. (AP)
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Screen Actors Guild Awards Cancel Live Nominations Announcement Due to Los Angeles Wildfires

A general view of the carpet at the 30th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, Feb. 24, 2024, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. (AP)
A general view of the carpet at the 30th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, Feb. 24, 2024, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. (AP)

The Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations have canceled an in-person announcement planned for Wednesday morning due to devastating wildfires and winds in the Los Angeles area.

The nominations for awards honoring the best performances in movies and television will be announced by press release instead of at a live event hosted by actors Joey King and Cooper Koch.

Homes and structures are burning in a pair of wind-swept fires in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles and Altadena, a neighborhood near Pasadena, California.

Kristen Bell will host the 31st annual awards ceremony, which will stream live on Netflix on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. Eastern from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles. Idris Elba hosted last year’s ceremony.

The SAG Awards are a reliable Oscar bellwether for the acting and best picture categories.

The fires have led to the cancellation of several entertainment events, including Wednesday's premiere of the Robbie Williams biopic “Better Man,” a premiere of Jennifer Lopez's “Unstoppable” movie and the premiere of Universal Pictures' upcoming horror film “Wolf Man.”