It is the fashion accessory, both funny and incongruous, that had to be remembered from this 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival, last May. On the occasion of the screening of Palme d'Or, Anatomy of a Fall by Justine Triet, American actress Jennifer Lawrence climbed the steps of the red carpet in a sublime Christian Dior baggy dress. But one detail had not escaped the eye of photographers: exit the uncomfortable pumps, the actress had associated her outfit with a pair of black plastic flip-flops.
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Political gesture?
Since then, many Internet users have praised the gesture of the Hunger Games actress on social networks, to the point of erecting it as a political act to fight against the dress regulations imposed on women during the ceremony. Unfortunately, the latter wanted to "set the record straight", during an interview with Entertainment Tonight on June 8. "There was nothing political about it. I had no idea what was going on until it came out and it became a real controversy." He added: "I didn't think I would break the dresscode of the Festival. In fact, I had no idea about all this controversy about flat shoes. And I also didn't know that some celebrities had already climbed the steps barefoot."
The latter refers (among other things) to the appearance of Julia Roberts, in 2016, who landed her toes in the wind in front of the Palais des Festivals. Or Kristen Stewart who had removed her pumps while climbing the stairs, two years later. Initiatives taken each time in order to protest against a regulation deemed too sexist. "It wasn't a political move, although it's the kind of thing I could have done," Lawrence said. But even if it means conveying a political message, I prefer to do it consciously and voluntarily. That was not the case there."
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A regular at the falls
In reality, the actress confessed that the heels she wore that day were too big for her feet and that being used to falls in public, she had only wanted to protect herself from any new reversal. "We had to take a picture with the production team of Excellent Cadaver and I know I would have fallen miserably if I had kept my heels on," she said.
In 2013, she fell while she went on stage to collect the Oscar for best actress for her role in Happiness Therapy, awarded by Jean Dujardin. Two months later, she stumbled again at a preview of the X-Men movie. Rebelotte in 2015, during a screening of The Hunger Games in Madrid. Enough to want to break the curse once and for all.