The other day, Kevin Spacey, who was acquitted of sexual assault-related charges in 2023, made his comeback to the Cannes Film Festival for the first time after 2016.
The actor, receiving the Award for Excellence in Film and Television from the Better World Fund, delivered an elongated and intense speech.
In the speech, he compared his Hollywood expulsion to scenarist Dalton Trumbo’s blacklisting and became emotional while speaking highly of his manager, best friend Evan Lowenstein. Spacey credited Lowenstein for helping him overcome “these last few challenging years” and become a man who is “more present, more loving, more understanding and more forgiving than” ever before.
Describing the Better World Fund’s decision to invite him to the event as a “risk”, Spacey sarcastically commented, “Who would have ever thought that honouring someone who has been exonerated in every single courtroom he’s ever walked into would be thought of as a brave idea?”
The actor also likened the said decision to the support that actor-filmmaker Kirk Douglas has shown towards blacklisted screenwriter Trumbo. He suggested that Douglas stood up for principle and justice. “The blacklist was a terrible time in our industry, but we must learn from it so that it never happens again,” Spacey said.
At the end of his speech, Spacey quoted singer-songwriter Elton John's song 'I’m still standing', calling the latter his 'friend' as well. “As my friend Elton John once said, and the reason that this means so much to me, is because I’m still standing, I’m still standing.”
The actor’s film The Awakening's producers orchestrated his Cannes visit. For the uninitiated, The Awakening (2023) is the first film that Spacey filmed after his acquittal. The conspiracy thriller is yet to release in theatres.