The 2025 Cannes Film Festival saw a flurry of splashy releases debut on the Croisetteâsome from beloved auteurs who have already scooped the prestigious Palme dâOr in previous years (Julia Ducournau, Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne) and others from those hoping to take it home for the very first time. Then, there were also a number of headline-grabbing performances, from the likes of Die My Loveâs Jennifer Lawrence, The History of Soundâs Paul Mescal, The Secret Agentâs Wagner Moura, and Sentimental Valueâs Renate Reinsve, which were in contention for prizes, tooâwith wins here likely to give hopefuls a significant boost ahead of 2026âs awards season.
Considering that last yearâs Palme dâOr winner, Anora, went on to collect the best-picture Oscar, as well as the fact that three 2024 prize winners (Sean Baker and Emilia Pérezâs Jacques Audiard and Zoe Saldaña) secured statuettes, and three others (Karla SofÃa Gascón, The Seed of the Sacred Figâs Mohammad Rasoulof, and The Substanceâs Coralie Fargeat) received nominations, the stakes were very high indeed.
If that wasnât enough, the final day of the 78th edition of the French Riviera showcase got off to a bumpy start, too, with a mass power outage across the region, which brought almost everything to a halt. Luckily, though, the lights stayed on inside Cannesâs Palais des Festivals thanks to a generator, which allowed screenings and press conferences to go ahead as planned, and electricity returned just in time for the closing ceremony.
Could its results match the chaos of everything that had come before it? To an extent, yes, with several big surprises.
Below, see all the winners from the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
In Competition
Palme dâOr: Jafar Panahi for It Was Just an Accident
Grand Prix: Joachim Trier for Sentimental Value
Jury Prize: Oliver Laxe for Sirât and Mascha Schilinski for Sound of Falling
Best Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho for The Secret Agent
Best Screenplay: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne for Young Mothers
Best Actress: Nadia Melliti for The Little Sister
Best Actor: Wagner Moura for The Secret Agent