Pedro Almodóvar is among the big names heading to Cannes this year after organisers unveiled the line-up for the 2026 film festival on Thursday.
The Spanish director is one of 21 filmmakers in contention for the Palme d'Or, alongside Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, Russia’s Andrey Zvyagintsev, Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda and Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu.
Festival director Thierry Frémaux announced the selection in Paris, with this year’s competition once again featuring a strong European and Asian line-up, while major Hollywood studios are set to be less prominent on the Croisette.
Among the films in competition are Almodóvar’s Bitter Christmas, Mungiu’s Fjord, which stars Renate Reinsve, and a new film from Kore-eda, who won the Palme d’Or in 2018 for Shoplifters.
Away from the main competition, there will also be a strong celebrity presence at this year’s festival. Woody Harrelson and Kristen Stewart are set to star in Full Phil, a Paris-set film directed by Quentin Dupieux, while John Travolta will present his directorial debut, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, out of competition.
Barbra Streisand and Peter Jackson will both receive honorary Palme d’Or awards during the festival, while South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook will serve as jury president.
Best known for films including Oldboy and Decision to Leave, Park takes over from Juliette Binoche, who headed last year’s jury.
The 79th Cannes Film Festival runs from 12 to 23 May.
