The film marks Johnny Depp's big return to the screen, less than a year after his victory in the lawsuit he opposed to his ex-girlfriend Amber Heard.
Jeanne du Barry
, directed by Maïwenn, has been chosen to open the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival on May 16, alongside its release in French cinemas, the organizers of the event have announced.
The actor, who plays the role of King Louis XV, will thus climb the steps of the red carpet alongside the team.
Read alsoNew photos of Johnny Depp and Maïwenn in the film
Jeanne du Barry
unveiled
Scandals,
Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard: a trial under very high tension
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Libel lawsuit
An important moment for the star, whose career was put on hold throughout his trial.
As a reminder, the Depp-Heard couple fought a tumultuous legal battle for defamation, after Amber Heard said she was a “survivor” of domestic violence in a column for the
Washington Post
in 2018. After several months of trial , the actress was finally sentenced, in June 2022, to pay 10 million dollars (9 million euros) to her ex-husband.
The latter had also been ordered to pay $ 2 million in financial compensation to the actress.
Amber Heard first appealed the verdict, before announcing that she had reached an amicable agreement with Johnny Depp in December 2022.
Read alsoAmber Heard reaches an unexpected legal agreement with Johnny Depp
Officially cleared of all charges of domestic violence, the actor of
Pirate of the Caribbean
is nevertheless groped back on the way to the cinema.
To do this, he chose to participate in the sixth feature film by French actress and director Maïwenn, aged 46, to whom we owe Polisse, jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2011
,
Mon
Roi
, or even
DNA
.
Jeanne du Barry
, which will be released in theaters on May 16, relates the life, rise and fall of King Louis XV's favorite, played by the filmmaker herself.
In video, the trailer for
The Factory of Lies: Johny Depp / Amber Heard Affair
Response to Cannes?
But will the rise of the steps of the ex-companion of Vanessa Paradis be without a stir?
The question already arises.
Because if the actor emerged victorious from his trial, the verdict was not enough to convince everyone on both sides of the Atlantic.
So much so that Amber Heard, who has become the most hated woman on social networks and recluse in Spain with her granddaughter, can still count on the support of part of public opinion, between feminist groups and die-hard fans.
Read alsoAnd if the world was wrong about Amber Heard?
Thus, there is no doubt that the decision of the Cannes Film Festival to make the actor climb the stairs will attract criticism and questions.
A formal intervention by demonstrators on the day of the event cannot be ruled out.
The festival is not hostile to the expression of commitments.
In 2022, the team of the documentary
Riposte féministe,
screened in a special session, had thus deployed banners and smoke bombs in tribute to the women victims on the red carpet.