Filmmaker Peter Jackson will be honoured with an honorary Palme d’Or at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival, organisers announced on Thursday.
The prestigious award will recognise Jackson’s remarkable career and what the festival described as “a body of work that blends Hollywood blockbusters and films d’auteur with extraordinary artistic vision and technological audacity.”
Responding to the honour, Jackson said it was “one of the greatest privileges” of his career. The director recalled first attending Cannes in 1988 to promote his debut feature, ‘Bad Taste’, before returning in 2002 to present a preview of ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring’.
“This festival has always celebrated bold, visionary cinema and I’m incredibly grateful to the Festival de Cannes for being recognised among the filmmakers and artists whose work continues to inspire me,” he said.
Jackson, widely known for directing The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, is regarded as one of the most influential filmmakers of the 21st century. The epic trilogy, released between 2001 and 2003, earned nearly $3 billion worldwide and won 17 Academy Awards.
Born in New Zealand, Jackson began his filmmaking career in the 1980s with the cult splatter comedy Bad Taste, which was eventually released in 1987 after several years of production. He later gained wider recognition with Heavenly Creatures (1994) and the mockumentary Forgotten Silver (1995).
His success led to larger Hollywood projects including ‘The Frighteners’, ‘King Kong’ and the ‘The Hobbit’ film trilogy.
Last year, honorary Palme d’Or awards were presented to Robert De Niro and Denzel Washington. The 2026 edition of the Cannes Film Festival is scheduled to take place from May 12 to 23.
