Sean Penn has attended the Cannes Film Festival a dozen times, from mingling with Robert De Niro in 1984 to presiding over the jury this year. His most recent visit, though, proved tumultuous. Penn’s picture, “The Last Face,” bombed with reviewers in such a way that other filmmakers would be hesitant to return.
Penn, on the other hand, did not hesitate. He had his Cannes premiere on Saturday night. Penn relaxed comfortably at a hotel bar a few hours before coming down the red carpet, excited to be back. He claims that the festival is the best in the world. “Everyone knows that it’s the big game.” And it’s a game that Penn enjoys. Even if he takes a few lumps, Cannes is worth it.
“The bad, stuff these days, I’ve been on such extreme ends. It’s like: whatever,” Penn says. “The thing is: I am confident that I know as much — more– about acting than any of these critics. And I’m very confident in the performance I’m most concerned about.”
Then, Penn extends his hand and gestures to his daughter, Dylan Penn, who is seated nearby. Dylan, 30, is the lead actress of “Flag Day.”
At the same time that her father is receding, Dylan is taking steps forward in the movies. Penn, 60, is currently filming Julia Roberts in Sam Esmail’s Watergate series for Starz. However, he has since distanced himself from Hollywood. Penn devotes more time to Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE), the foundation he founded to aid Haitians following the 2010 disaster. Haiti has been hit by a new wave of natural disasters this week.
During the epidemic, CORE set up testing and immunization stations, including one at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, and distributed millions of vaccines. Penn still has two prospective film parts that he claims he pledged to do years ago. But what’s next? “Then I’m at a loss for words. I’d be pleasantly pleased. I don’t think I’d start a film without first knowing if it was going to be a film. And I’m not one of them.
Penn’s priorities are increasingly at contrast with those of Hollywood. He’s never done a franchise movie before. He bemoans the fact that Marvel movies have “taken up so much space and claimed so much time in the careers of so many outstanding people.” He longs for movies that aren’t “simply razzle-dazzle, Cirque du Soleil flicks.’’ He also has difficulties with the so-called “cancel culture.” Penn recently said that only Danish princes will portray Hamlet in the future, arguing that he wouldn’t be permitted to play gay legend Harvey Milk (2008’s “Milk”).
But it’s possible that his biggest gripe is the rise of direct-to-streaming film releases. Penn admits, “It’s not the girl I fell in love with,” as he always puts it.