‘Jeanne du Barry’ directed, co-written, and featuring French actress and filmmaker Maïwenn and starring Johnny Depp, will open the 76th Cannes Film Festival. The Red Sea International Film Festival (Red Sea IFF) though the Red Sea Film Foundation backed the historic drama which will world premiere at the Palais on May 16, 2023.
‘Jeanne du Barry’ is the Red Sea IFF’s first international co-production with France and the first film to have received funding from Saudi Arabia to win the highly coveted position of opening Cannes, widely considered to be the most prestigious film festival in the world. Since 2019, the Red Sea Film Foundation has supported the development, production, and post-production of 170 films from the Arab world and Africa.
Director Maïwenn plays the film’s titular heroine alongside Johnny Depp as King Louis XV and an A-list French cast including Benjamin Lavernhe, Melvil Poupaud, Pierre Richard, Pascal Greggory, Noémie Lvovsky, and India Hair.
The French-language film’s official synopsis describes Vaubernier played by Maïwenn as “a young working-class woman hungry for culture and pleasure, who uses her intelligence and allure to climb the rungs of the social ladder one by one. She becomes the favorite of King Louis XV who, unaware of her status as a courtesan, regains through her his appetite for life. They fall madly in love. Against all propriety and etiquette, Jeanne moves to Versailles, where her arrival scandalizes the court.”
Mohammed Al Turki; CEO of the Red Sea IFF said: “Maïwenn is a filmmaker of extraordinary caliber, and ‘Jeanne du Barry’ is the perfect example of incredibly rich storytelling featuring a stellar cast. We are honored to be involved in supporting this film and excited to see it world premiere to global audiences at the Cannes Film Festival next month.”
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