The organizers of the Cannes Film Festival announced, yesterday, Wednesday, the selection of the first live-action film by actor Johnny Depp since the highly publicized defamation case against his ex-wife Amber Heard, as the opening film for the festival, which begins on May 16 in France.
The French-language film, titled "Jeanne du Barry," stars director and actress Gaewen Le Pescot as Jeanne Picot, a woman who rises from poverty to join the inner circles of King Louis XV, and Depp plays the king.
The actor behind the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean" has not appeared in cinema or television since the end of the famous trial in June 2022.
The American actor is trying to resume his film career after winning his legal battle in the United States in front of Heard, who accused him of mistreating her. Depp denied hitting Heard or any other woman.
Saudi production
Muhammad Al-Turki, CEO of the Red Sea International Film Festival – an institution affiliated with the Saudi Investment Fund – announced last January the participation in the production of the movie "Jeanne du Barry", and said, "We hope that this cooperation will strengthen the ties between Saudi and French cinema." .
"This is the first of many international films that we can support that support women filmmakers in front of and behind the camera," Al-Turki added in a statement.
It is noteworthy that the Red Sea International Film Festival, which launched in 2019, has participated to date in financing about 170 African and Arab films, and this is its first contribution to European cinema.
