The French Riviera festival beginning on Tuesday will include 12 days of non-stop world premieres before culminating on May 23 with the presentation of the Palme d'Or, the festival's top honour and one of the film industry's most prestigious awards.
The festivities kick off with the opening-night film, The Electric Kiss, a French period-comedy, and the awarding of an honorary Palme d'Or to the Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson.
What is not at Cannes has been as buzzed about as much as what is. Hollywood is largely absent.
While blockbusters such Top Gun: Maverick and Elvis have touched down at previous incarnations, studio films in 2026 have been either scared away by the possibility of a rocky reception or by the high cost of flying in A-listers to the Cote d'Azur.
The closest thing in Cannes' slate is an anniversary celebration for Fast & Furious.Speaking to the media on Monday, Cannes artistic director Thierry Fremaux said Hollywood "is reshaping" in the midst of Paramount Skydance's proposed acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.
"I hope the studio films will come back," Fremaux said.
Cannes has become better known for its lengthy standing ovations than its boos.
In 2026, a long list of big-name filmmakers will have centre stage.
Among the filmmakers set to unveil new movies are Pedro Almodovar (Bitter Christmas), James Gray (Paper Tiger), Na Hong-jin (Hope), Pawel Pawlikowski (Fatherland) and Ryusuke Hamaguchi (All of a Sudden).
On Tuesday, the jury deciding the Palme d'Or and others will hold a news conference before beginning their sequestered movie-watching.
South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook is serving as president of the nine-member panel, along with Demi Moore, Chloe Zhao, Stellan Skarsgard and others.
How much any of this will serve as backdrop for The White Lotus remains to be seen.
The fourth season of Mike White's acclaimed HBO series is based around a trip to Cannes.
In April, the show began shooting on the French Riviera.
While Cannes may be light on big Hollywood movies, it is not lacking in stars.
Set to appear in the next two weeks are Kristen Stewart, Barbra Streisand, Adam Driver, Javier Bardem, Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Rami Malek, Sebastian Stan, Sandra Huller and many others.
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