Javier Bardem, Mark Ruffalo and Ken Loach join Canal+ far-right petition at Cannes
The Canal+ petition has grown rapidly after CEO Maxime Saada said he would not work with those who signed it
- International stars, including Javier Bardem, Mark Ruffalo and Ken Loach, have signed the Canal+ petition at Cannes
- The petition has grown from around 600 signatories to more than 3,500 following Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada's public remarks
- Saada said he would not work with artists who signed the petition, calling himself a target of the term "crypto-fascist"
A wave of international stars, among them Javier Bardem, Mark Ruffalo and Ken Loach, have added their names to a petition warning against what signatories describe as a "far-right grip" tightening around the French film industry through Canal+ and its billionaire shareholder.
Petition swells in wake of CEO's remarks
Originally launched ahead of the Cannes Film Festival by approximately 600 French film professionals, the petition has since grown to more than 3,500 signatures following comments made by Canal+ chief executive Maxime Saada at the festival.
Speaking at a producers' lunch last weekend, Saada declared that he no longer wished to collaborate with artists who had put their names to the petition. "I don't want to work with people who call me a crypto-fascist," he said.
The collective behind the campaign
The petition was spearheaded by the collective known as "Zapper Bolloré" and takes direct aim at the expanding footprint of Vincent Bolloré in French media and entertainment.
Central to the signatories' concerns is Canal+'s planned acquisition of a 34% stake in cinema giant UGC.
Those who have signed argue that such consolidation risks placing unprecedented influence over film financing, distribution and exhibition in the hands of a conservative media empire increasingly associated with right-wing editorial politics, particularly in the run-up to the next French presidential election in 2027.
A defining off-screen drama at Cannes
The dispute surrounding Canal+ has emerged as one of the festival's most prominent off-screen storylines.
Le Monde reported that more than half of recent French films involved professionals who have now signed the petition.
The debate first erupted earlier in the week when roughly 600 industry figures — including actress Juliette Binoche and director Arthur Harari, whose film The Unknown, starring Léa Seydoux, had its premiere at Cannes — put their names to the original petition.
As well as criticising Bolloré's growing influence over French media and culture, signatories raised alarm over Canal+'s acquisition of the 34% stake in theatre chain UGC and expressed concern about a perceived rightward shift in the group's editorial direction ahead of the 2027 presidential contest, in which the far-right party Rassemblement National is considered a leading contender.
