Julia Ducournau's ‘Titane' Follow-Up ‘Alpha' Gets Thunderous 11.5-Minute Cannes Ovation After Premiere Sees Attendee Carried Out on Stretcher
The premiere of 'Alpha' faced a brief interruption when, about an hour into the film's runtime, attendees in the balcony began waving their phone flashlights. Some audience members shouted for a doctor in French, asking for the screening to be halted. Paramedics eventually arrived and, shortly after, one audience member was carried out on a stretcher. The screening of 'Alpha' continued without pausing as the incident unfolded.
More from Variety
'Alpha' Review: A Potentially Infected Tattoo Sparks a Tortured AIDS Allegory in Julia Ducournau's Rotten Follow-up to 'Titane'
'My Father's Shadow' Review: Nigeria's First Ever Cannes Selection Marks a Miraculous Gem of Autofiction
Rihanna Stuns Cannes Red Carpet in the Rain to Support A$AP Rocky at 'Highest 2 Lowest' World Premiere
It remains unclear what the cause of the medical emergency was. The incident did not appear to be related to the content of Ducournau's film, which had not yet depicted any particularly shocking material by that part in its storyline. Variety has reached out to the festival press office for more information.
'Alpha' stars Cannes regulars Golshifteh Farahani and Tahar Rahim opposite 'Sex Education' favorite Emma Mackey and Finnegan Oldfield. The plot centers on the title character, a troubled 13-year-old living with her single mother. Per the Cannes synopsis: 'Their world collapses the day she returns from school with a tattoo on her arm.'
Ducournau is already a Cannes history-maker thanks to her last directorial effort, 'Titane.' The body horror psychological drama was one of the most provocative titles at the 2021 festival and was awarded the Palme d'Or by the Spike Lee-led jury. Ducournau became only the second female director to win Cannes' top prize. 'Alpha' marks the director's third feature. Her debut, the 2016 cannibal adolescence thriller 'Raw,' premiered at Cannes in the Critics' Week sidebar.
When Ducournau accepted the Palme d'Or in 2021, she recalled her joy watching the Cannes awards each year as a child : 'At that time, I was sure that all the films awarded must have been perfect because they were on the stage. And tonight, I'm on that same stage, but I know my film is not perfect — but I think no film is perfect in the eyes of the person who made it. You could even say mine is monstrous.'
'Alpha' marks Ducournau's second Cannes competition title. Neon, which distributed 'Titane,' has teamed up with the filmmaker once again for the 'Alpha' release.
Best of Variety
New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
Emmy Predictions: Talk/Scripted Variety Series - The Variety Categories Are Still a Mess; Netflix, Dropout, and 'Hot Ones' Stir Up Buzz
Oscars Predictions 2026: 'Sinners' Becomes Early Contender Ahead of Cannes Film Festival
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
22 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Margaret Cho blasts Dean Cain over ICE career: ‘You're not even white'
Superman may stand for truth, justice and the American way, but Margaret Cho has a different way to describe Dean Cain, the actor who once played him: 'dumbass.' 'Why would you join ICE and encourage people to join ICE when your ancestors were interned in World War II?' the San Francisco comic asked in a video shared with her 347,000 followers on Instagram on Aug. 8, addressing Cain directly. 'You're Japanese. You're not even white.' Cain, who is of Japanese descent on his father's side, is best known for his portrayal of the Man of Steel in the 1990s series 'Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,' opposite Palo Alto native Teri Hatcher. He first shared his plans to join the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency while promoting recruitment for the agency on Instagram earlier this month. 'You're never gonna be white, no matter how racist you are, no matter how wrong you act.' Cho continued. 'You're always Wong, never white. Dumbass.' Cho isn't the only one to criticize Cain for his decision. The former onscreen superhero received immediate backlash from fans after sharing his initial video, during which he lauded ICE for arresting 'hundreds of thousands of criminals.' He justified the move with his personal background, explaining that 'I'm a sworn law enforcement officer, as well as being a filmmaker, and I felt it was important to join with our first responders to help secure the safety of all Americans.' Cain added that he will be sworn in as an honorary ICE agent in the coming weeks. Born Dean George Tanaka, he previously denied claims of masking his Japanese heritage in a July interview with Variety, noting that despite growing up disconnected from that side of his family, he is proud of it. 'Tanaka is my given name,' Cain said. 'It's funny that people are like, 'Well, you tried to hide that.' It's tattooed on my ankle.' He also acknowledged that his family was interned in the Minidoka War Relocation Center in Idaho during World War II. 'That was a horrible injustice,' he said. 'But I don't think that I deserve any sort of reparations.' Cain has been a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump for years, promoting the administration's 'anti-woke' agenda and even blasting director James Gunn for describing the hero as an 'immigrant' while promoting 'Superman,' his latest take on the character with David Corenswet in the title role. Cho, the daughter of Korean immigrants, has become known for her candid social commentary since rising onto the scene in the early 1980s. While her views are oftentimes expressed through her comedy, she has also been known to speak out during interviews and on social media. Earlier this year, she opened up about the long-running tensions between her and fellow comic Ellen DeGeneres, detailing their strained relationship over the decades. Cho is set to return to the Bay Area on May 29, for a performance at the Palace of Fine Arts as part of her Choligarchy Tour, which she claims will be her 'most blistering and brutally honest show yet.'
Gizmodo
an hour ago
- Gizmodo
The First Trailer for ‘Keeper' Deepens Its Creepy Mystery
Some filmmakers take a long time between projects. Others are more rapid-fire. In the time since Oz Perkins popped up in Jordan Peele's last film, 2022's Nope, playing a small role as a movie director, he released Longlegs (the highest-grossing indie film of 2024) as well as this year's The Monkey—and in a few months, Keeper will hit theaters too. Peele has the sports horror film Him, which he produced, coming out soon, but his next directorial effort won't arrive until October 2026. Different creators have different methods, budgets, and so forth, of course, and Perkins' prolific output speaks to a confidence both behind the camera and from the studio—in Keeper's case, Neon—that's backing up the project. The latest teaser trailer for Keeper gives us a greater glimpse at what to expect in a way that Longlegs' deliberately enigmatic marketing did not… but we're still not exactly sure what the hell is going on, surely as Perkins intends. 'A dark trip' from Perkins indeed. We get two points of view using identical dialogue and mostly different visuals, showing characters played by Tatiana Maslany and Rossif Sutherland (yes, Donald Sutherland's son) seemingly in a relationship that begins to fracture. Only her name, 'Liz,' has quotes around it; he's just Malcolm, and that detail alone opens up all sorts of questions about why that might be. Both perspectives begin with a sweet moment between the two, then the images and music spiral into terror. But who or what is the source of all the fright? What exactly is going on in that isolated cabin? Who are the other women we see fleetingly? And what definition of 'keeper' is most relevant here… since it's looking like the term as it's used to describe romantic compatibility goes out the window early on? We'll find out more as Keeper's arrival date looms nearer. Directed by Perkins and written by Nick Lepard, it hits theaters November 14. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
‘Highest 2 Lowest': A$AP Rocky's ‘God-Given Talent…Blew Me Away' Says Co-Star Ilfenesh Hadera
Starring as Denzel Washington's wife in a Spike Lee's 'Highest 2 Lowest' was a dream come true for Ilfenesh Hadera. But she admits she was skeptical when she heard A$AP Rocky was also cast in a starring role in the film. 'I mean, like total transparency, I asked Spike who was cast as the kidnapper. He said [A$AP] Rocky and I was like, 'oh…' I'd never seen him act before,' Hadera told Variety on Monday at the movie's New York City premiere. More from Variety 'Nobody 2' Star Sharon Stone Says Her Unhinged Villain Character Was Inspired by the 'Cruelty' of Social Media: 'There's a Lot of Pent-Up Feelings ... That I Put on the Screen' 'Wednesday' Star Hunter Doohan on Killing [SPOILER] and Why Missing Lady Gaga on Set Felt Like a 'Hate Crime': 'I'm the One Gay Guy on the Show!' Charli xcx on Her Acting Career and Being Inspired by David Cronenberg and Abel Ferrara Films: 'I Don't Necessarily Go to Movies to Feel Good' In 'Highest 2 Lowest,' a modern reimagining of Akira Kurosawa's 1963 classic 'High and Low,' Rocky takes on his most substantial role yet as the film's central antagonist. This isn't Rocky's first time on the big screen. He made his feature film debut as a drug dealer in 'Dope,' but it was his supporting role in the 2018 legal drama 'Monster' that caught Lee's attention. Rocky plays Yung Felon, a wannabe rapper obsessed with music mogul David King (Washington) who stages an elaborate kidnapping to get his attention. At the climax of the film, Rocky and Washington go head-to-head in a rap battle fueled by hard truths and timeless wisdom. At one point, Yung Felon even mentions feeding his lady and newborn baby (Rocky's wife, Rihanna, is expecting their third child). 'I love him as a rapper, he's my Harlem brethren,' Hadera explained. 'But, you know, you have these musicians who decide they want to act, and because they have relationships, start to do it. And in this film, if that's not a solid performance, everything kind of falls apart.' After seeing the final cut of 'Highest 2 Lowest' at the film's world premiere at Cannes in May, Hadera said any doubts she had about Rocky's casting disappeared. 'When I saw that man act at Cannes, he had this charisma and God-given talent that blew me away,' she said. 'I can't imagine that his calendar is not full with pre-production plans for years to come after this movie comes out. He's so great in it.' Rocky, arriving fashionably late to the New York premiere on Monday, trotted down the carpet line at the BAM Harvey Theater with infectious enthusiasm. When asked if he sees a prolific movie career ahead of him, he responded with three simple words: 'I hope so.' During his May cover story with Variety's Angelique Jackson, Rocky's conviction was clear after being asked whether he was nervous going up against Washington. 'Nah, I was born for this,' he said. 'I'm not gonna waste nobody's time. This is what I do — this is the same approach you would take to making an album or to directing or designing anything: You've got to give it your all… If somebody don't got integrity, and they're just doing it for the check or the look or the next opportunity, it never works out for them.' Rocky's creative ambitions left a lasting impression on his younger castmate Elijah Wright, son of Jeffrey Wright, both on-and-off the call sheet. 'A$AP is the best,' Elijah said. 'I grew up with his music, so it's really cool and inspiring to see that he's tackling music and acting and doing everything. That's something that I aspire to do too.'Later this year, Rocky will hit the circuit again to promote his turn in the Sundance hit 'If I Had Legs I'd Kick You.' Whether his next move keeps him in front of the camera or takes him into another creative lane, Spike Lee has no doubt about the outcome. 'He's multi-talented,' Lee told Variety. 'He's going to excel in whatever he does.' 'Highest 2 Lowest' opens in select theaters Aug. 15 before streaming on Apple TV+ on Sept. 5. Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week What's Coming to Disney+ in August 2025 What's Coming to Netflix in August 2025 Solve the daily Crossword
