Cannes names 22-film competition

Cannes is where the year’s prestige-movie map gets redrawn. Not all at once, and not always fairly, but this is still the festival that can turn a director’s next film into an event before regular audiences have seen a frame. This year’s main Competition lands at 22 films, with the final slot going to James Gray’s “Paper Tiger” in the festival’s April 22 additions. The 79th edition runs May 12 to May 23, and Park Chan-wook’s jury will decide who leaves with the Palme d’Or. ### Why does the 22-film count matter? Because Cannes treats Competition as the inner sanctum. Lots of movies screen on the Croisette, but the Palme race is the part that changes careers, sales prospects, and the whole tone of the festival. The official selection first unveiled 21 Competition titles on April 9, then added Gray’s “Paper Tiger” on April 22, bringing the total to 22. (festival-cannes.com) ### Which filmmakers are in the race? It’s a very auteur-heavy field. Pedro Almodóvar is back with “Amarga Navidad.” So are Asghar Farhadi with “Parallel Tales,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi with “All of a Sudden,” Hirokazu Kore-eda with “Sheep in the Box,” Cristian Mungiu with “Fjord,” László Nemes with “Moulin,” Pawel Pawlikowski with “Fatherland,” Ira Sachs with “The Man I Love,” and Andrey Zvyagintsev with “Minotaur.” That tells you what Cannes is betting on this year — established directors with serious festival muscle. (festival-cannes.com) ### What changed after the first announcement? The big Competition change was “Paper Tiger.” Cannes had said in April that the lineup was not complete, and then it used the later additions announcement to finalize the field. That matters because late additions often become part of the festival’s intrigue — they can signal a movie finished just in time, or one Cannes especially wanted to squeeze in. Here, the late add was Gray, which gives the lineup one more high-profile director in the main race. (festival-cannes.com) ### Who decides the winner? Park Chan-wook does not decide it alone, but he sets the tone. He becomes the first Korean filmmaker to preside over the Cannes Competition jury, and he’ll work with eight other jurors: Demi Moore, Chloé Zhao, Stellan Skarsgård, Ruth Negga, Isaach De Bankolé, Diego Céspedes, Laura Wandel, and Paul Laverty. That is a pretty eclectic group — actors, directors, and a screenwriter — which usually means the final prize reflects both artistic ambition and emotional punch. (hollywoodreporter.com) ### Why is Park Chan-wook such a notable pick? Because Cannes and Park already have history. “Oldboy” won the Grand Prix there in 2004. “Thirst” took the Jury Prize in 2009. “Decision to Leave” won him Best Director in 2022. So this is not Cannes picking a random prestige name — it’s the festival handing the gavel to someone whose own career is tightly tied to the Croisette. (festival-cannes.com) ### Is this mostly a European lineup? Not entirely, but Europe is still the center of gravity. The Competition includes films from Spain, France, Romania, Hungary, Poland and beyond, while also pulling in major Asian auteurs like Hamaguchi, Kore-eda, Na Hong-jin and Fukada Koji elsewhere in the official selection. U.S. presence looks lighter in Competition than in some recent years, with Ira Sachs and James Gray standing out more than a broad American wave. (festival-cannes.com) ### So what should people watch for first? The first thing is not the prize — it’s the reviews. Cannes runs on instant reputation swings. A strong premiere can lock in distribution heat and awards chatter within hours. A weak one can puncture months of anticipation just as fast. The Palme d’Or still matters most at the end, but the market and the mood usually start moving long before closing night. (festival-cannes.com) ### Bottom line? Cannes has now locked the shape of its 2026 main event. The field is 22 films, the jury is set, and the directors in contention are exactly the kind who can define the next movie year if the premieres hit. (festival-cannes.com)