George Lucas will receive the Honorary Palme d’Or at the closing ceremony of the 77th Festival de Cannes on May 25.
In a statement, Lucas said, “The Festival de Cannes has always held a special place in my heart. 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.”
In turn, the festival said in a statement, “The Festival de Cannes is delighted to pay tribute to one of the greatest figures of contemporary cinema, a man with an extraordinary career, who brings together great entertainment and innovation, mythology and modernity and cinephilia and technology.”
Lucas began his career in feature filmmaking with 1971’s “THX-1138,” which was produced by Francis Ford Coppola. Next came “American Graffiti” in 1973, starring a young actor named Harrison Ford who would, of course, go on to play one of the most beloved characters in all of cinema: Han Solo in 1977’s “Star Wars: A New Hope.” The 12 Star Wars films (four of which Lucas directed) make up one of the most cherished franchises ever created. Lucas also came up with the idea for the Indiana Jones movies, collaborating with his longtime friend Steven Spielberg. The most recent entry in the franchise, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” premiered at the Cannes film festival last year.
French actress Camille Cottin (“Call My Agent!”) will host the Closing Ceremony of the 77th Cannes Film Festival, which will take place at the Grand Théâtre Lumière and will be broadcast live on France Télévisions and Brut on Saturday, May 25.
As previously announced, Quentin Dupieux’s “The Second Act” starring Léa Seydoux will open this year’s festival and George Miller’s “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” will premiere there. The complete lineup of films is due to be announced Wednesday.
