Cannes jury to announce Palme d'Or May 23

The Festival de Cannes said the 79th edition will end on Saturday, May 23, with the jury led by South Korean director Park Chan-wook unveiling the 2026 Palme d’Or and the rest of the competition prizes. The announcement comes after 12 days of screenings on the Croisette and a competition slate of 22 films, according to the festival’s official press materials. Actor Eye Haïdara will host the closing ceremony, the festival said, after also presenting the opening ceremony on May 12. The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 8:15 p.m. in Cannes and will be broadcast live on France 2 and internationally on Brut, according to the festival. ### Who is actually handing out the Palme d’Or this year? Park Chan-wook will preside over the feature-film jury, the festival said when naming him president for the 79th edition. The Cannes press office described his appointment as a first for Korean cinema and said he and his jury would award the 2026 Palme d’Or on the stage of the Grand Théâtre Lumière on May 23. (festival-cannes.com) The festival said Park’s jury includes Demi Moore, Ruth Negga, Laura Wandel, Chloé Zhao, Diego Céspedes, Isaach De Bankolé, Paul Laverty and Stellan Skarsgård. That makes a nine-member panel responsible for selecting the top prize and the rest of the awards from the main competition. ### How many films are still in the running tonight? (festival-cannes.com) The festival said 22 films are in Competition for the 2026 awards. Cannes repeated that number in its closing-ceremony announcement and in its Official Selection materials published in April. France 24 also reported ahead of the festival that 22 films were competing for the Palme d’Or this year. (festival-cannes.com) The official selection was initially unveiled in April, with trade coverage noting that the lineup could still be supplemented before the festival opened on May 12. ### Why is Eye Haïdara part of the ceremony again? (festival-cannes.com) Eye Haïdara will host the closing ceremony, the festival said in a May 22 press release. Cannes also said she presented the opening ceremony on May 12, giving the 2026 edition the same onstage host at both ends of the festival. The festival’s ceremonies page lists the 79th edition as running from May 12 to May 23. (france24.com) The closing event is one of the final public moments before the Palme d’Or winner is screened for festival audiences, according to the festival’s May 23 schedule page. ### Is there a consensus favorite going into the announcement? The Associated Press said on Saturday that the race appeared wide open. (festival-cannes.com) Its preview said many films had not fully won over critics and that Cannes’ usual festival-long momentum around a single front-runner had been weaker this year. U.S. News, republishing the AP report, similarly framed the Palme d’Or contest as unsettled heading into the ceremony. (festival-cannes.com) Other forecast pieces from critics and trade outlets have pointed in different directions, underscoring the absence of a single dominant favorite before the jury’s decision. ### What happens once the jury makes its choice? (wgauradio.com) The Festival de Cannes said the closing ceremony starts at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, May 23. After the awards are presented, the Palme d’Or-winning film will be screened at the Grand Théâtre Lumière, according to the festival’s official May 23 program. The next concrete step is the publication of the winners list from among the 22 competition titles. (wgauradio.com) Cannes said that announcement will come from Park Chan-wook’s jury during the closing ceremony on May 23. (festival-cannes.com 1) (festival-cannes.com 2)