A year after a libel lawsuit between ex-spouses Johnny Depp and Amber Heard—which turned into a grotesque pop culture spectacle along the way—Depp is gearing up to make his comeback movie. Jeanne du Barry Tuesday night at the Cannes Film Festival.
Before the premiere, Heard supporters launched an online campaign using the hashtag #CannesYouNot to address the festival and Depp, whom Heard has repeatedly accused of verbally and physically abusing her throughout their marriage. A jury found both parties responsible for separate defamation cases, but awarded a verdict of $15 million to Depp and $2 million to Heard.
“If you support Cannes, you support predators,” journalist Eve Barlow wrote on Instagram. “Cannes is proud of its history of supporting rapists and abusers.” A slide of her post features photos of Depp as well as other Hollywood men against whom various harassment allegations have been made, including Roman Polanski, Harvey Weinstein, Woody Allen, Gerard Depardieu, and Luc Besson.
“We think it is hypocritical for the Cannes Film Festival to follow a policy against discrimination and harassment when opening the festival with a movie starring Johnny Depp,” the operator of the Twitter account said. @LeaveHeardAlone said Variation. “The Depp v Heard case was the vehicle through which the backlash against the #MeToo movement went viral. Hollywood industries seem to be using this reaction to return to the status quo.
Also Tuesday, Academy Award-winning actress Brie Larson, a jury member at Cannes this year and a historically outspoken advocate for Time’s Up, glossed over a question about Depp at a press conference.
“You ask I He?” he replied when asked if he would attend. Jeanne du Barry World premiere. “Sorry, I don’t understand the correlation or why it’s me specifically. You’ll see, I guess, if I see it. And I don’t know how I would feel about it if I did. (Depp’s movie isn’t playing in competition at Cannes, so Larson as a judge doesn’t need to see the movie.)
Another star who gave a similarly neutral response to the Depp debacle was Natalie Portman. when asked by Show Fair If he had any idea about the Cannes opening with the Depp movie in May, Portman replied“I haven’t read much about it. But it can always be better. We will continue to push for it to be better.”