American director George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars film saga and the Indiana Jones stories, will receive an honorary Palme d’Or at the closing evening of this year’s Cannes festival. He created a unique world that brought joy to many viewers, the organizers of the show on the French Riviera reasoned.
The news was brought by AFP. “When my film THX-1138 was selected to screen at the festival in 1971, I was surprised and delighted. Since then I have returned to Cannes several times as a screenwriter, director and producer,” responded Lucas. “It’s a great honor,” he thanked.
According to the French organizers, the American “created his own imaginary world, its geography, inhabitants, languages and values” similar to JRR Tolkien in the case of The Lord of the Rings.
Lucas invented Star Wars and directed the first episode himself from 1977. He left the direction of the next two films to his colleagues, he himself was signed again under the second trilogy from 1999 to 2005. Seven years later, he sold his company Lucasfilm to The Walt Disney Company, which then produced the third Star Wars trilogy between 2015 and 2019 without his participation.
The organizers of the event also highlight the production skills of the artist, who went on to create a series about the archaeologist Indiana Jones. Lucas will celebrate his 80th birthday on the opening day of the festival, i.e. May 14. This year’s 77th edition of the festival in Cannes will last until May 25. The final evening with Lucas’ participation will be broadcast on French television.
This year’s jury is chaired by director Greta Gerwig. The organizers have yet to announce the complete program, but it is already known that George Miller will present a new installment of the Mad Max saga called Furiosa at Cannes this year, and Kevin Costner will bring the first installment of his new western epic called Horizon, An American Saga. There is also speculation about the possible arrival of Francis Ford Coppola, fresh from the completion of his magnificent project Megalopolis, complements server Variety.com.
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