Iconic film star Harrison Ford received an honorary Palme d’Or for lifetime achievement at this year’s Cannes Film Festival this evening, as he was at the festival for the official premiere of Lucasfilm's Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Ford was given the Palme d'or d'honneur in front of a packed out crowd who came to see the first screening of the highly anticipated sequel.
Festival director Thierry Fermaux took the stage before the screening to specifically thank “the CEO or whatever” of Disney, Bob Iger, who was in attendance at Cannes alongside the film's producer - and Lucasfilm president - Kathleen Kennedy. Proclaiming Ford as "one of the greatest stars in cinema", Fermaux then directed the audience to view a specially crafted tribute video to salute Ford's career.
A Happy but Humbled Harrison Ford
When the lights came up, and after a standing ovation, a clearly emotional Ford was handed the microphone and spoke passionately about the honour he had just received, adding that it was a privilege for him to work with the likes of James Mangold and Phoebe Waller-Bridge on the latest installment of the Indiana Jones franchise.
"I'm very touched and I'm very moved. They say when you're about to die, you see your life flash before your eyes and, on the screen, I just saw my life flash before my eyes! A great part of my life, but not all of my life. My life has been enabled by my lovely wife, Calista, who has supported my passions and my dreams and I'm grateful. And I love you [the audience] too. Thank you. You gave my life purpose and meaning, and I'm grateful for that. I'm so grateful. I'm deeply moved and humbled this honour, but I've got a movie you gotta see."
In this latest - and final, for Ford - outing in the Indiana Jones series, Ford is joined by Waller-Bridge as Indy's goddaughter Helena, who drags the archaeologist out of retirement. The movie sees a 70-year-old Indiana Jones as an older and wearier character - although it will open with a 25 minute prologue set in the 1940s, with Ford digitally de-aged to resemble his younger self from the 1980s. The film will also feature Antonio Banderas, John Rhys-Davies, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Thomas Kretschmann, Toby Jones and Boyd Holbrook.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will be released in theaters worldwide on June 30. Before then, you can check out the official trailer for the movie down below.