More than 380 prominent figures from the global film industry have signed an open letter condemning what they describe as “genocide” in Gaza, just hours before the opening of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
The statement was published Tuesday in Libération and Variety, and comes amid heightened scrutiny over the festival’s stance on international conflicts.
“We cannot remain silent while genocide is taking place in Gaza,” the letter declares. It was initiated by several pro-Palestinian activist groups and has attracted support from a host of well-known names including actors Ralph Fiennes, Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, and directors Pedro Almodóvar and Ruben Östlund.
The letter also honours 25-year-old Gazan photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike last month along with ten family members. A documentary about her life, Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk by Iranian director Sepideh Farsi, is scheduled to premiere at Cannes on Thursday as part of the ACID selection, reports AFP.
Speaking to AFP, Farsi urged festival organisers to break their silence. “There needs to be a real statement,” she said. “Saying 'the festival isn't political' makes no sense.”
British director Jonathan Glazer—who won an Oscar this year for The Zone of Interest, a film about Auschwitz—also signed the letter, along with actors Mark Ruffalo and Javier Bardem.
Initial reports incorrectly listed Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche as a signatory, but her spokesperson clarified she had not endorsed the petition.
War on screen, but not from Gaza
While this year’s Cannes will include a “Ukraine Day” featuring two documentaries on President Volodymyr Zelensky and a frontline war film, no similar programming has been scheduled for Gaza. Still, the festival has acknowledged Hassouna's death and said her documentary aims to honour her memory.
Palestinian twin filmmakers Arab and Tarzan Nasser are also set to screen a fictional film set in Gaza in 2007, featured in one of Cannes’ secondary sections.
Politics, controversy and cinema collide
Cannes opens Tuesday with the French film Leave One Day by Amélie Bonnin, and will honour veteran actor Robert De Niro with an honorary Palme d'Or. De Niro, a frequent critic of former US President Donald Trump, has found himself indirectly at the center of festival buzz following Trump’s recent call for a 100-percent tariff on foreign-made films.
Festival director Thierry Frémaux defended Cannes’ strong American presence, saying, “American cinema remains great cinema. The United States remains a great country of cinema.”
Beyond Gaza and geopolitics, French actor Gérard Depardieu also looms large in headlines, with a verdict expected in his sexual harassment case, a major moment in France’s ongoing reckoning with #MeToo.
Big names, big debuts
Alongside independent cinema, Cannes will host blockbuster premieres including Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two, bringing Tom Cruise back to the Croisette on Thursday. The festival will also spotlight directorial debuts from Scarlett Johansson (Eleanor the Great) and Kristen Stewart (The Chronology of Water).
Organisers addressed recent speculation around red carpet dress codes, confirming that while near-nude outfits are allowed, full nudity is now formally banned, “in keeping with French law.”
The 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival promises a volatile mix of glamour, politics, and activism—both on and off screen.
