The prestigious Cannes Film Festival started this past Wednesday, and a jury media conference with Brie Larson has been sparking up conversations. The Oscar-winning actress was involved in a tense exchange with a journalist after being asked if she would be seeing the premiere of Johnny Depp’s new film, Jeanne Du Barry.
The journalist asked Larson, who is an outspoken advocate for Time’s Up and the #MeToo movements, for her opinion on Depp’s film opening the Cannes festival, and if she was planning to watch it. Larson seemed taken aback, responding with “You’re asking me that? I’m sorry, I don’t understand the correlation or why me specifically.”
Brie Larson was surprised to be asked about Johnny Depp’s opening film: “You’re asking me that? I’m sorry, I don’t understand the correlation or why me specifically.” https://t.co/5Ec2S23051 #Cannes pic.twitter.com/QPfO1Yb4qS
— Variety (@Variety) May 16, 2023
The journalist tried to explain his question by referring to the infamous John C. Depp, II vs. Amber Laura Heard case that were held from April 11 to June 1 in Fairfax County, VA. The case ruled against Heard, and in favor of Depp’s defamation allegations against her.
After describing the case as “very well-played out in American and national media,” the journalist refers to the controversy of Depp’s film being chosen to open the film festival, and that he was merely curious about the Marvel actress’ opinions on the film.
“Well, you’ll see, I guess, if I’ll see it, and I don’t know how I’ll feel about it if I do,” responded Larson, trying to avoid going into detail about Depp’s 2022 case. Depp’s film, while opening the festival, is not playing in competition. So, as a Cannes juror, Larson is not required to view it.
The twitter video, released on Variety’s account, has reached almost 15 million views in one day, and the comments highly supported the actress’ evasive answers. Captain Marvel News responded to the video, “Absolutely correct! Perfect answer to an unnecessary question.”
Absolutely correct! Perfect answer to an unnecessary question.
— Captain Marvel News (@CaptMarvelNews) May 16, 2023
Other commenters were infuriated by the journalist’s question, feeling that it was an attempt to catch her off guard and paint her in a bad light. One user, @Particles343, tweeted “Lets drag this innocent woman Brie Larson into an argument that has nothing to do with her to sell article clicks. That’s all the reporter did. I love Captain Marvel don’t f that up for me.”
Another user, @queenfeyree, commented “she was like that has nothing to do with me and i can respect that, such a good answer. like talk about something else maybe like films she’s doing atm.” Let’s talk about her upcoming The Marvels movie coming up in November.
Lets drag this innocent woman Brie Larson into an argument that has nothing to do with her to sell article clicks. That’s all that reporter did.
I love Captain Marvel don’t f that up for me.
— Particles ? (@Particles343) May 17, 2023
she was like that has nothing to do with me and i can respect that, such a good answer. like talk about something else maybe like the films she’s doing atm
— feyre’s gf ? (@queenfeyree) May 16, 2023
Cannes is one of the most highly-anticipated festivals in the movie world, and Larson’s position as a juror is thrilling for her career. We hope to see her answer more relevant questions throughout the week, or continue to gracefully pivot away from unnecessary ones.
Top image: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
