Barbie Director Greta Gerwig Named 2024 Cannes Jury President

Greta Gerwig, the indie film darling who became a household name this year by co-writing and directing the billion dollar-grossing Barbie for Warner Bros., has been named president of the 2024 jury at the Cannes Film Festival. The prestigious festival, which happens every year in France, is fairly used to having big Hollywood stars on board — last year’s Cannes jury included The Batman‘s Paul Dano and The Marvels‘s Brie Larson. Still, it’s generally considered a showcase for some of the world’s most daring filmmakers and independent films. Gerwig will be the first American woman director to head up the jury.

Before Barbie, Gerwig gained notoriety as the director of Lady Bird and Little Women. Ironically, none of her films have screened at Cannes, making this her first time there in any official capacity.

“This is an obvious choice since Greta Gerwig so audaciously embodies the renewal of world cinema, for which Cannes is each year both the forerunner and the sounding board,” said Cannes Festival President Iris Knobloch and Artistic Director Thierry Frémaux. Their statement said that Gerwig “is also the representative of an era that is breaking down barriers and mixing genres, and thereby elevating the values of intelligence and humanism.”

In addition to being the first American woman director to serve as jury president, Gerwig is both the second American woman overall (behind Olivia de Haviland) and the second woman director (after Jane Campion), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

“I love films – I love making them, I love going to them, I love talking about them,” said Gerwig in a statement. “As a cinephile, Cannes has always been the pinnacle of what the universal language of movies can be. Being in the place of vulnerability, in a dark theater filled with strangers, watching a brand-new film is my favorite place to be. I am stunned and thrilled and humbled to be serving as the president of the Cannes Film Festival Jury. I cannot wait to see what journeys are in store for all of us!”

The 77th Cannes Film Festival will take place on May 14-25, 2024.

This story has been edited to clarify some confusing language around the history of women at the festival.