Elijah Wood breaks Cannes festival’s strict no-selfie red carpet rule

CANNES, FRANCE: Actor Elijah Wood attracted attention at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival after reportedly violating one of the event’s long-standing red carpet regulations while attending the festival to present an honorary Palme d’Or to filmmaker Peter Jackson.

Wood was seen taking a selfie on the red carpet, drawing immediate attention as selfies have officially been prohibited at the Film Festival since 2018 as part of the event’s crowd control measures. The event is scheduled to run from May 12 through May 23.

Elijah Wood breaks long-standing Cannes red carpet rule 

According to reports, Wood attended the Cannes opening event on Tuesday, May 12 and appeared on the red carpet before presenting Jackson with an honorary Palme d’Or. However, while on the red carpet, he was photographed taking a selfie alongside several others, which violated one of the event's strict red carpet policies. 

The festival has prohibited selfies since 2018 in an attempt to prevent congestion and delays during arrivals. The first attempt to discourage selfies on the red carpet reportedly came in 2015, when festival director Thierry Fremaux criticized the trend, stating, “You never look as ugly as you do in a selfie.”

However, according to the event committee, the festival’s selfie ban was not officially enforced until 2018, with security personnel directing celebrities to move along if they paused to take selfies during red carpet arrivals.

When asked by Deadline whether the festival would reconsider its no-selfie policy this year following Meta’s recent sponsorship association with it, Fremaux responded, “I’ll respond immediately on the selfies — No. I don’t deal with those issues.”

He continued, “We try to keep economic constraints separate from the artistic side to keep us free and independent.”

Fremaux further stated that no sponsor had ever imposed itself on the festival, while referring to sponsor L’Oreal and the selected film 'The Richest Woman in the World', which was loosely based on the Bettencourt affair involving Liliane Bettencourt, its largest shareholder.

Elijah Wood honors Peter Jackson as filmmaker reflects on ‘Lord of the Rings’ legacy

Jackson received the coveted trophy from Wood, who famously played Frodo Baggins in the blockbuster 'Lord of the Rings' series. Wood talked about getting the call he was cast in Jackson’s movies, remembering, “I sat down on the floor of my bedroom and knew my life had been divided into before and after.”

He further said, "Peter grew up in a country that back then barely had a film industry at all, but in true Pete fashion, that was not about to hold him back… When I was just 18 years old, The Lord of the Rings was not just the beginning of Frodo’s journey, but the beginning of my own. So Pete, I truly have. No words to thank you for that.”

The New Zealand filmmaker first arrived at the Cannes market with his debut feature 'Bad Taste' in 1987. In 2001, he also presented a preview sequence from 'The Lord of the Rings,' the first installment of the trilogy that would later earn 17 Academy Awards.

Following a standing ovation and an embrace from Wood, Jackson reflected on making 'Bad Taste' over four years while working weekends alongside his job as a photo engraver in New Zealand, “If the film hadn’t sold well at the marketplace here, I would have gone back to New Zealand to my photo engraver job. Fortunately, it sold really well. It started my career.”

Jackson also recalled bringing footage from 'The Lord of the Rings' to Cannes in 2001 at a time when the franchise faced intense media scrutiny due to uncertainty surrounding studio Warner Bros, which was reportedly up for sale.

“What goes around comes around,” Jackson joked, drawing laughter from the audience while referencing the company’s ongoing sale discussions involving David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance. 

“We brought 20 minutes here in 2001 and did some press in a castle up in the hills,” Jackson remembered.