75th Cannes Film Festival to feature Cronenberg, Chan-wook and ‘Elvis’

PARIS (AP) — Films by David Cronenberg, Park Chan-wook and Kelly Reichardt will vie for the coveted Palme d'Or at a Cannes Film Festival set to unspool against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.

Cannes film festival artist director Thierry Frémaux and president Pierre Lescure announced the lineup to this year's festival, Cannes' 75th, in a press conference Thursday in Paris. After cancelling the 2020 event and hosting a slightly scaled down 2021 edition, the French Riviera festival is looking to reclaim its pre-pandemic allure with some 35,000 accredited attendees expected next month.

The 18 films announced in Cannes' prestigious competition lineup feature new works by several former Palme winners, including Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda ("Broker"), Swedish social satirist Ruben Ostlund ("Triangle of Sadness") and Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne ("Tori and Lokita").

Also in competition: Cronenberg's "Crimes of the Future," starring Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart and Viggo Mortensen; Kelly Reichardt's "Showing Up," which reunites her with "Wendy and Lucy" star Michelle Williams; Chan-wook's Korean mystery thriller "Decision to Leave"; and French filmmaker Claire Denis' "Stars at Noon" with Margaret Qualley.

The 75th anniversary of the French Riviera film extravaganza "is happening in special circumstances: the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, a world that has changed and will keep changing," Fremaux said.

The biggest Hollywood splashes expected at Cannes had already been announced, including a screening of "Top Gun: Maverick," which will be accompanied by a tribute to star Tom Cruise. The "Top Gun" sequel will play out of competition, as will Baz Luhrmann's Elvis Presley biopic "Elvis," starring Austin Butler and Tom Hanks.

Organizers will announce the jury at a later date.

Cannes' international village of flag-waving pavilions annually hosts more than 80 countries from around the world. But organizers earlier said no Russian delegations would be welcome at the this year because of Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.