Cannes jury head Binoche says Trump is trying to save reputation with film tariffs

Juliette Binoche, head of this year's Cannes Film Festival jury, said on Tuesday US President Donald Trump's threat to impose 100% tariffs on films made abroad, among his other policy decisions, was also about saving his reputation.

“We can see he's fighting, and he's trying in many, many different ways to save America and save his ass,” the French actor told journalists in the French Riviera resort town.

“We have a very strong community of filming in our continent, in Europe, so I don't know what to say about that (his tariff announcement),” said Binoche.

The Oscar-winning actress will decide, along with eight other jury members, including Halle Berry and Jeremy Strong, which film will take home the festival's Palme d'Or top prize.

Strong, known for playing Kendall Roy in the HBO series Succession, said  under Trump's presidency, the role of film as a way to communicate truth had become more important.

He said he regarded his jury membership as a counterbalance to his portrayal of the young Trump's mentor Roy Cohn in last year's Cannes competition film The Apprentice.

“Roy Cohn I see essentially as the progenitor of fake news and alternative facts. We're living in the aftermath of what I think he created,” said Strong.

Berry, who played Jinx in the James Bond film Die Another Day, ruled out returning to the spy franchise after Amazon's MGM Studio struck a deal earlier this year to take creative control under a new joint venture.

“I don't know if 007 should be a woman,” said Berry, who added that the time for a Jinx spin-off had also passed.

“In 2025, it's nice to say, 'She should be a woman,' but I don't know if I think that's the right thing to do.”

Reuters