Cannes won’t can accused

A sense of dread is looming over this year’s Cannes Film Festival behind the scenes, with rumors that several attendees will be outed as sexual predators.

But the famed fest’s president now says they won’t necessarily expel anyone named in an expected exposé.

French press has been reporting that a list of 12 actors and directors will be hit with #MeToo allegations during the film fest, which starts next week.

“French cinema is in a cold sweat,” claimed the newspaper Le Figaro, which also reports that the fest is so worried, they’ve hired a crisis p.r. team.

But fest president Iris Knobloch says in a new interview with Paris Match that if a star or director with a movie at the festival is named in the exposé, their film will not immediately be disqualified.

“We’re extremely attentive to what is happening today, and we’re following the situation closely,” she said.

“If the case of a person being implicated should arise, we will take care to make the right decision on a case-by-case basis, in consultation with the board and all the involved parties. But we would also consider the work to see what is best for it. It is the real star.”

The #MeToo movement has been revived overseas by French actress and activist Judith Godrèche, whose short film “Moi Aussi,” or “Me Too,” will play the fest.

Godrèche filed two complaints of rape with the police against French filmmakers Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon earlier this year, accusing both of assaulting her when she was only a teenager.

Cannes reckoned with the #MeToo movement back in 2018 as women came out against Harvey Weinstein, a movie industry titan and Cannes regular, with several of his alleged assaults happening during the festival. That year, they launched a hotline along with the French government that victims could call to report any incidents.