Cannes 2024: Meryl Streep honored with Palme d’Or award

Meryl Streep was honoured with the Palme d’Or award at the Cannes 2024 Opening Ceremony.

 

The 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival kicked off on Tuesday.

 

Hollywood star who won three Oscars and 21 nominations, received a two-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival as she accepted the prestigious Palme d’Or. 

The event featured music from ‘Mamma Mia’ including ‘The Winner Takes it All’ and ‘Dancing Queen’.

The award was presented to her by French actor Juliette Binoche.

 

This year’s film festival with the theme ‘Many Ways To Be An Icon’ is being held at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès on the French Riviera from May 14 to May 25.

 

Cannes 2024 is focused on honouring confidence and self-empowerment.

 

 

 

Streep expressed gratitude to Cannes for inviting her back after 35 years. Her previous appearance at the festival was in 1989 for ‘Evil Angels’.

She remarked that watching clips of her career felt like “looking out the window of a bullet train, watching my youth fly into my middle age, right onto where I am standing on this stage tonight. So many faces and so many places that I remember.”

Juliette Binoche remet une Palme d'or d'honneur à la "Dancing Queen" Meryl Streep 💃 C'est officiel, le 77e Festival de Cannes peut commencer ! #Cannes2024

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Juliette Binoche awards an honorary Palme d'or to "Dancing Queen" Meryl Streep 💃 It's official, the 77th Festival… pic.twitter.com/t3RQhuFuGW

— Festival de Cannes (@Festival_Cannes) May 14, 2024

 

Streep reminisced about attending Cannes when she was about to turn 40 and a mother of three. “I thought my career was finished,” she recalled.

She added, “That was not an unrealistic expectation for actresses at that time. And the only reason that I’m here tonight and that it continued is because of the very gifted artists with whom I’ve worked, including Madame La President,” pointing to jury president Greta Gerwig.

Meryl Streep ended her speech by expressing her gratitude, saying that she is “just so grateful that you haven’t gotten sick of my face and you haven’t gotten off the train.”

She also shared, “My mother, who is usually right about everything, said to me: ‘Meryl, my darling, you’ll see. It all goes so fast. So fast.’ And it has, and it does. Except for my speech, which is too long.”

VIDEO: 🇫🇷 🎥 Streep honoured at Cannes Film Festival opening

The 77th festival opened with American actress Streep receiving an honorary Palme d'Or award, while Quentin Dupieux's "Second Act" was the opening night film#AFPVertical #Cannes2024 pic.twitter.com/Dw7qGDDzaA

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) May 15, 2024