The 2026 Cannes Film Festival has come to a close after two weeks packed with new world cinema in the south of France. Saturday marked the annual awards ceremony, in which the competition jury revealed the winner of the Palme d’Or and more prizes out of the Palais des Festivals. The Palme went to Cristian Mungiu’s “Fjord,” his second Palme win after “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days” in 2007 and the seventh consecutive win for the film‘s North American distributor, Neon.
Mungiu isn’t the only repeat winner; “Fatherland” filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski, who won Best Director in a tie with “The Black Ball” filmmakers Los Javis, also won Best Director in 2018 for “Cold War.”
South Korean director Park Chan-wook headed the jury as president, with the rest of the jurors including filmmakers Diego Cespedes, Laura Wandel, and Chloé Zhao; actors Isaach de Bankolé, Demi Moore, Ruth Negga, and Stellan Skarsgård; and screenwriter Paul Laverty.
The Camera d’Or, the distinguished prize for best first feature across the entire festival, is decided upon by an independent jury.
The short film jury featured filmmaker Carla Simón as president, deciding on the Short Film Palme d’Or alongside artist/actress Park Ji-Min, screenwriter/producer Ali Asgari, actor/director Salim Kechiouche, and director/screenwriter Magnus von Horn.
French actress Eye Haidara hosted the event, with an Honorary Palme d’Or given to Barbra Streisand, who could not attend the festival in person but gave a video message thanking presenter Isabelle Huppert and Cannes for the award.
IndieWire’s favorite films out of the Cannes competition included “All of a Sudden,” “The Black Ball,” “Fatherland,” “Fjord,” “Minotaur,” and “Paper Tiger,” all of which have been tipped to win prizes. The New York Times’ Kyle Buchanan shared an X thread with intel on what filmmakers and talent were invited back to the festival. Folks from “All of a Sudden,” “The Black Ball,” “Coward,” “The Dreamed Adventure,” “Fatherland,” “Fjord,” and “Minotaur” were seen back at the festival, and all won prizes. From the YouTube red carpet live stream, I spied “Fatherland” director Pawel Pawlikowski, “All of a Sudden” director Ryusuke Hamaguchi and his cast, Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo and their “Black Ball” cast, Lukas Dhont and the stars of “Coward,” and Andrey Zvyagintsev and his “Minotaur” actors among the returning attendees.
For a refresh, the last six consecutive Palme d’Or winners were also distributed by Neon in North America, including last year’s “It Was Just an Accident,” as well as Oscar Best Picture winner “Anora.” Other distributors could’ve disrupted the streak, as Netflix acquired “The Black Ball” and “Gentle Monster,” and Mubi has “Coward,” “Fatherland,” and “Minotaur.” But no.
Cannes Film Festival 2026 Award Winners
Palme d’Or: “Fjord,” Cristian Mungiu
Grand Prix: “Minotaur,” Andrey Zvyagintsev
Jury Prize: “The Dreamed Adventure,” Valeska Grisebach
Best Director: Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, “The Black Ball”; Pawel Pawlikowski, “Fatherland”
Best Actress: Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto, “All of a Sudden”
Best Actor: Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne, “Coward”
Best Screenplay: “A Man of His Time,” Emmanuel Marre
Camera d’Or for Best First Feature: “Ben’imana,” Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo
Short Film Palme d’Or: “Para Los Contrincantes,” Federico Luis
