There was a five-hour power outage in the south of France, deemed suspicious by the authorities, but the sun was out and the stars on hand as the closing ceremony of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival brought a relatively controversy-free festival to an end. The big winner of the night was Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just An Accident,” which took the coveted Palme d’Or. This was also the sixth film that U.S. distributor NEON had either invested in before production began, or acquired before or during the festival. In this case, acquired it just a few days ago.
In a moving acceptance speech, Panahi asked for unity from all Iranians around the world, remarking, “No one should tell us what sort of clothes we should wear or what we should do.” He added, “Let us continue to hope.”
Panahi has now won the top prize at all three major European film festivals. The Palme d’Or for “Accident,” the Golden Bear from the Berlin Film Festival in 2015 for “Taxi,” and the Golden Lion at the 2000 Venice Film Festival for “The Circle.”
Another NEON title, Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value,” took second place, the Grand Prix honor. “Sentimental’s” star, Reate Reinsve, won Best Actress at Cannes in 2021 for Trier’s “The Worst Person in the World.”
Despite a significant amount of hype, Jennifer Lawrence did not win Best Actress for “Die My Love.” Instead, newcomer Nadia Melliti won it for “The Little Sister.” Wagner Moura took Best Actor for “The Secret Agent.” That Brazilian film also saw Kleber Mendonça Filho win Best Director.
This year’s competition jury includes president Juliette Binoche and members Halle Berry, Dieudo Hamadi, Hong Sang-soo, Payal Kapadia, Carlos Reygadas, Alba Rohrwacher, Lejia Slimani, and Jeremy Strong.
A complete rundown of this year’s festival winners is as follows:
COMPETITION
Palme d’Or – “It Was Just An Accident,” Jafar Panahi
Grand Prix – “Sentimental Value,” Joachim Trier
Jury Prize – “Sirat,” Oliver Laxe
Jury Prize – “The Sound of Falling,” Mascha Schilinski
Special Award – “Resurrection,” Bi Gan
Best Director – “The Secret Agent,” Kleber Mendonça Filho
Best Screenplay – “Young Mothers,” Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
Best Actress – Nadia Melliti, “The Little Sister”
Best Actor – Wagner Moura, “The Secret Agent”
Honorary Palme d’Or –
Camera d’Or for Best First Film – “The President’s Cake,” Hasan Hadi
Camera d’Or Special Mention – “My Father’s Shadow,” Akinola Davies Jr.
Palme d’Or for Best Short Film – “I’m Glad You’re Dead Now,” Tawfeek Barhom
Palme d’Or for Best Short Film Special Mention – “Ali,” Adnan Al Rajeev
UN CERTAIN REGARD
Un Certain Regard Prize – “The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo,” Diego Céspedes
Jury Prize – “Un Poeta (A Poet),” Simón Mesa Soto
Best Director – “Once Upon a Time in Gaza,” Arab and Tarzan Nasser
Best Actor – “Urchin,” Frank Dillane
Best Actress – “O Riso e a Faca (I Only Rest in the Storm),” Cleo Diára
Best Screenplay – “Pillion,” Harry Lighton
“The Little Sister,” Hafsia Herzi
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Editor-at-Large Gregory Ellwood is one of the entertainment industry's most respected journalists and critics. Based in Los Angeles, he's the only current awards expert who previously worked on Oscar campaigns at a major movie studio. Over the years, he has written for the LA Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Vox, among others. He also co-founded the entertainment news site HitFix, which spawned a legion of influential Emmy and WGA Award-winning alumni.
