23-05-2025
Michelle Keegan puts on a glamorous display in a structured white gown and dramatic hat as she leads the stars in Cannes ahead of L'Oreal Light on Women Award
Michelle Keegan put on a glamorous display in a structured white gown and a dramatic hat ahead of the L'Oreal Light on Women Award.
The former Coronation Street star, 37, was seen at Hotel Martinez on Friday during day eleven of the Cannes Film Festival before the L'Oreal event.
The L'Oreal Light on Women Award 'champions emerging female voices in film' and will this year be hosted by American actress Viola Davis, 59, who follows in the footsteps of Elle Fanning and Kate Winslet.
Michelle turned heads as she stepped out in a stunning white corseted strapless gown, which featured a peplum design and figure-hugging skirt.
She paired the gown with a striking matching hat and open-toed satin heels, accessorising with a statement diamond necklace.
Also spotted in the south of France ahead of the event was Sex Education star Gillian Anderson, who made a statement in a green gown.
Gillian looked effortlessly stylish as she was spotted leaving Hotel Martinez in the spring green sleeveless gown.
Her dress featured a full skirt and a small cinching belted design and she swept her blonde locks into a messy bun.
The L'Oreal award will be handed out to one standout female director from the Cannes Short Film Competition after Viv Li scooped the prize for her work on Across the Waters in 2024.
The event comes on the penultimate night of the festival after a host of A-listers flocked to Cannes over the previous couple of weeks.
Filmmakers come from nearly every corner of the globe to showcase their films while dealmakers work through the night to sell finished films or packaged productions to various territories.
The awards were being held as part of Cannes Film Festival, which will come to an end on Saturday with a closing ceremony.
Cannes, where filmmakers, sales agents and journalists gather from around the world, is the Olympics of the big screen, with its own golden prize, the Palme d´Or, to give out at the end.
'You release a film into that Colosseum-like situation,' says Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho, who´s returning to Cannes with 'The Secret Agent, a thriller set during Brazil ´s dictatorship.
'You've got to really prepare for the whole experience because it´s quite intense - not very far from the feeling of approaching a roller coaster as you go up the steps at the Palais.'
This year's Cannes Film Festival is taking place in the wake of Trump´s vow to enact tariffs on international films.
Trump sent shock waves through Hollywood and the international film community when he announced on May 4 that all movies 'produced in Foreign Lands' will face 100 percent tariffs.
The White House has said no final decisions have been made. Options being explored include federal incentives for U.S.-based productions, rather than tariffs. But the announcement was a reminder of how international tensions can destabilise even the oldest cultural institutions.
The Cannes Film Festival originally emerged in the World War II years, when the rise of fascism in Italy led to the founding of an alternative to the then-government controlled Venice Film Festival.
In the time since, Cannes´ resolute commitment to cinema has made it a beacon to filmmakers. Countless directors have come to make their name.
This year is no different, though some of the first-time filmmakers at Cannes are already particularly well-known.
Kristen Stewart (The Chronology of Water), Scarlett Johansson (Eleanor the Great) and Harris Dickinson (Urchin) have all unveiled their feature directorial debuts in Cannes´ Un Certain Regard sidebar section.
Many Cannes veterans have returned, including Tom Cruise (Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning), Robert De Niro - who received an honorary Palme d´Or 49 years after Taxi Driver premiered in Cannes - and Quentin Tarantino, who paid tribute to low-budget Western director George Sherman.
Over recent years the star-studded extravaganza has arguably won more attention for the outfits worn by its celebrity guests than the roster of feature films being screened on the Croisette.
But new nudity rules, devised for 'the sake of decency,' have been implemented at this year's festival.
According to organisers, the austere move is an attempt to stifle the celebrity trend for 'naked dresses' - namely provocative outfits that reveal considerably more than they conceal - on the red carpet.
'For decency reasons, nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as any other area of the festival,' states a Cannes festival document.
'The festival welcoming teams will be obligated to prohibit red carpet access to anyone not respecting these rules.'
The surprise new policy features in a recent festival-goers charter - released with a series of outlines regarding expected public behaviour.
Guests are expected to converge on the Grand Auditorium Louis Lumière for some of the highest profile film screenings across a packed two-week schedule in Cannes.
It's understood that the iconic venue now adopts a more conservative dress code, with suits, dinner jackets and floor-length evening gowns generally favoured over headline grabbing ensembles.
Classic little black dresses, cocktail dresses, pant-suits, dressy tops and elegant sandals, 'with or without a heel', will also be permitted.
While the decision to implement a more stringent policy will be a first, it is not known if French TV broadcasters, wary of airing nudity, played a role in its enforcement.
Major red carpet events, including the Cannes Film Festival, are aired in France by France Télévisions
Recently attracting more models and influencers than actors and filmmakers, the annual ceremony has seen an increase in risque red carpet fashion statements.
In 2021, American supermodel Bella Hadid bared her cleavage in a plunging black gown while attending a screening of Tre Piani (Three Floors).
She pulled a similar stunt three years later, with guests at the 2024 gala left speechless after she attended the premiere of Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice completely braless beneath a sheer brown evening dress.
