Korean auteur Park Chan-wook to preside over Cannes main competition jury

Acclaimed South Korean director Park Chan-wook will head the main competition jury at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, marking the first time a Korean filmmaker has been appointed to the role.

Park and his jury will award the 2026 Palme d’Or on May 23 at the Grand Théâtre Lumiere, the festival organisers announced in a statement.

Last year’s honour was presented by Juliette Binoche to Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi for It Was Just an Accident.

“Park Chan-wook‘s inventiveness, visual mastery, and penchant for capturing the multiple impulses of women and men with strange destinies have given contemporary cinema some truly memorable moments,” Cannes festival president Iris Knobloch and director Thierry Frémaux said in a statement.

“We are delighted to celebrate his immense talent and, more broadly, the cinema of a country deeply engaged with the questioning of our time.” Park’s relationship with Cannes dates back to 2004, when Old Boy won the Grand Prix. He has since earned multiple honours at the festival, including the Jury Prize for Thirst (2009) and Best Director for Decision to Leave (2022).

Known for visceral, subversive storytelling, Park is frequently compared to filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino, Brian De Palma and David Fincher. He has cited Alfred Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa, Ingmar Bergman and Luchino Visconti as key influences.

His latest film was 2025’s No Other Choice, is a satirical take on the pursuit of success in Korean capitalist society.

He is best known internationally for his Vengeance trilogy, which includes Sympathy for Mister Vengeance (2002), Old Boy (2004) and Lady Vengeance (2005).

The 79th Cannes Film Festival is scheduled to be held from May 12 to 23.