On Tuesday, May 16, the 76th Cannes Film Festival officially began with Maiwenn’s Jeanne du Barry, and it appears that Johnny Depp got the audience reaction he had hoped for. The actor received a 7-minute standing ovation, and even teared up as the crowd applauded him. A video of the moment is doing the rounds of social media. Cannes Film Festival 2023 opened with the premiere of Johnny Depp’s film, Jeanne du Barry, directed by Maiwenn, where the actor plays French king Louis XV. The period drama marks Johnny’s first film after his high-profile trial last year with his ex-wife Amber Heard. Both parties had accused each other of physical and verbal abuse. Jeanne du Barry is being dubbed as Johnny’s ‘comeback’ film.
Reacting to the video of Johnny tearing up at the film’s Cannes premiere, which was shared on Twitter by Variety, a fan tweeted, “Well deserved! Bravo!” One more said, “Omg (Oh my God) I love every single moment of this day for him. Bravo, Johnny Depp!!” A Twitter user said, “So proud of him.” A fan also tweeted, “Congratulations, Johnny! This is validation and vindication at its finest!”
However, some Twitter users were not happy to see Johnny being hailed at the prestigious festival. One tweeted, “So gross that you’re featuring him.” Some were not willing to forget the abuse allegations levelled against Johnny by his ex-wife, actor Amber Heard. A Twitter user wrote, “I can smell the day-old whiskey and stale cigarettes from here.” One more said, “It was a 3-minute (standing ovation) and he’s teary-eyed because he’s drunk and on dope.”
Earlier, in an interview with Variety, Cannes chief Thierry Fremaux had addressed the potential backlash to having Jeanne du Barry opening the festival. He had said, “I don’t see Maiwenn’s film as a controversial choice at all, because if Johnny Depp had been banned from working it would have been different, but that’s not the case… We only know one thing, it’s the justice system and I think he won the legal case in court. But the movie isn’t about Johnny Depp.”