Cannes Film Festival winners: Who won this year’s Palme d’Or?

It Was Just An Accident took home the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival, leading an international wave in France. The post Cannes Film Festival winners: Who won this year’s Palme d’Or? appeared first on JoBlo.

May 25, 2025 - 10:45

Cannes Film Festival winners: Who won this year’s Palme d’Or?

The red carpet is rolling up at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and the top honor, the coveted Palme d’Or has been awarded to Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident, edging out favorite Sentimental Value, as well as films by Richard Linklater (Nouevelle Vogue), Ari Aster (Eddington), Wes Anderson (The Phoenician Scheme), Kelly Reichardt (The Mastermind) and two-time Palme d’Or winners the Dardenne brothers (Young Mothers).

Of note, It Was Just an Accident is the first film with (partly) Iranian backing since Abbas Kiarostami’s remarkable A Taste of Cherry 1997 co-win to take home to Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. The film tells of a minor accident that yields consequences that none of the parties could foresee. Director Jafar Panahi has been highly critical of his home country of Iran, facing numerous arrests and even facing charges of propaganda. In his acceptance speech, Panahi bravely called for action, stating in part, “Let’s reach that moment together when no one dares to tell us what we should completely include, what we should say, what we shouldn’t do… Cinema is a society. No one has the right to tell us what you should do, what you shouldn’t do.” The film will be distributed by Neon, who, with this win, has linked itself to the Palme d’Or winners six years in a row.

As far as Sentimental Value – which is one of the most praised films out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival – goes, it would take home the runner-up prize, the Grand Prix. (It will also be distributed by Neon.) But it would be The Secret Agent that would be the most awarded film, as it took home both Best Director for Kleber Mendonça Filho and Best Actor for Wagner Moura. Best Actress, meanwhile, went to Nadia Melliti for coming-of-age film The Little Sister. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne would take Best Screenplay, which they previously won for 2008’s Lorna’s Silence.

In the Un Certain Regard category, The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo landed the top prize, while the Jury Prize went to A Poet by Simón Mesa Soto, Best Director went to Tarzan and Arab Nasser for Once Upon a Time in Gaza, and Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Screenplay were split between Urchin, I Only Rest in the Storm and Pillion, respectively.

As previously reported, Denzel Washington wound up the recipient of a surprise honorary Palme d’Or. Robert De Niro was also honored with such an award. Other than those, Americans were completely shut out at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

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