There’s wild anticipation every year ahead of the official rolling out the red carpet in front of the Palais des Festivals, but this year’s hype hit another level due to swirls surrounding both the actor and the filmmaker, who also stars as the favored mistress of 18th century monarch Louis X, played by Depp.

The film, Depp and #Cannes2023 all were trending topics on Twitter by early afternoon as debates continued to rage over its inclusion.

Maïwenn, a Cannes jury prize winner for her 2011 drama Polisse and an outspoken critic of the #MeToo movement, faced her own share of controversy as of late after allegations surfaced that she grabbed the head of journalist Edwy Plenel and spit on him while he was dining at a Paris restaurant. Plenel published an investigation regarding sexual abuse allegations against filmmaker Luc Besson, who happens to be Maïwenn’s ex-husband. She confirmed the allegations during a TV talk show appearance last week.

None of that came up during Depp’s brief red carpet interview with a French journalist right upon arriving on the red carpet. Up first, Depp joked about speaking French in the film by saying that he was “hiding my French teacher.” He praised Maïwenn as a filmmaker by saying that her “vision of the entire film was incredibly consistent” throughout production. “She’s mighty,” he continued, adding that she was also flexible in her process and open to trying different options. “I thought she did a beautiful job on set.”

“Choosing to open the world’s most prestigious film festival with an attacker waving at the crowd on the red carpet … conveys a clear, devastating message. In 2023, the voices of victims and their allies continue to be questioned, ignored and silenced by others. We ask for a responsible film industry that is willing to get rid of dynamics of power. We demand that the cinema that defends the ideas and values we hold dear does so not only in its narratives and representations, but also in the way it is made and screened.”

It’s not the only story of the night. Michael Douglas turned up to the festivities to receive an honorary Palme d’or in recognition of his career and contributions to cinema. He was joined by wife Catherine Zeta-Jones and their daughter, Carys. More to come on that when Douglas takes the stage to accept.

The opening ceremony was attended by many movie stars and filmmakers, models and French glitterati. Among those making their way up the Palais steps were Catherine Deneuve, Helen Mirren, Uma Thurman (with son Levon Roan Thurman-Hawke), Elle Fanning, Mads Mikkelsen, Guardians of the Galaxy star Pom Klementieff, Fan Bingbing, Farhana Bodi, Alessandra Ambrosio, Xavier Dolan, Hofit Galan, Fagun Thakrar, Jiang Megjie, Guan Xiaotong, Simona Tabasco, Cindy Bruna and more.

During Tuesday’s jury press conference, Cannes newbie Larson fielded a question from Variety about Depp and whether she would see the out of competition Jeanne du Barry, which opened in French cinemas today. As an outspoken advocate for sexual assault survivors and former member of the Time’s Up advisory board, Larson said, “You’ll see if I see it, and I don’t know how I’ll feel about it if I do.”

Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Fremaux was more direct during his conference Monday ahead of the official opening, saying, “To tell you the truth, in my life, I only have one rule: It’s the freedom of thinking, and the freedom of speech and act within a legal framework. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldn’t be here talking about it…this [controversy] came up once the film was announced at Cannes,” said Fremaux, who then said he paid no attention to Depp’s divorce and the media spectacle of the defamation trials.