Robert De Niro Slams Trump’s ‘Unacceptable’ Movie Tariffs at Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony

Robert De Niro used his Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or acceptance speech to address President Donald Trump’s promise to impose 100% tariffs on the films shot outside of the U.S., saying the issue should concern the world – not just American filmmakers.

“Now, he has announced a 100% tariff on films produced outside the U.S. Let that sink in for a minute. You can’t put a price on creativity, but apparently you can put a tariff on it,” De Niro said, who took the stage to receive an honorary Palme d’Or award.

He went on to call on attendees and others watching to take a peaceful stand against Trump’s political missions.

“Of course, this is unacceptable. All these attacks are unacceptable, and this isn’t just an American problem. It’s a global one. And like a film, we can’t just all sit back and watch,” De Niro, who’s never shied away from sharing his thoughts about Trump, said. “We have to act now. Without violence, but with great passion and determination. It’s time for everyone who cares about liberty to organize, to protest, and when there are elections, of course to vote. Tonight, and for the next 11 days, we show our strength and commitment by celebrating art in this glorious festival.”

Cannes Film Festival Jury President Juliette Binoche also shared her thoughts on Trump’s tariff plans, which she referred to as the president’s way of rescuing the country and his own behind.

“I understand that Trump is trying to protect,” Binoche said before a group reporters during Cannes’s opening press conference. “For us, we have a strong community of filmmaking on our continent in Europe … I don’t know what to say — I can see that he’s fighting to save America and to save his ass.”

She added that she’s not “acceptable to answer” questions related to Trump’s interest in considering TV and film tariffs for projects shot overseas.

Back on May 4, Trump announced plans to enforce a 100% tariff on films produced outside of the country, mentioning in a Truth Social post that the United State’s film industry is “dying a very fast” death because of the incentives foreign countries offer filmmakers to shoot on their land.

Strong, who is among the nine members of the festival’s 2025 Cannes Competition jury, and starred as Trump’s former advisor Roy Cohn in the 2024 film “The Apprentice,” didn’t weigh in Trump’s tariffs plans, but shared that the real-figure he played helped pave the way for Trump’s entry into the White House.

“Roy Cohn is the progenitor of fake news and alternative facts, and we’re living in the aftermath of what he created,” Strong said.

He continued: “I think that at a time when truth is under assault, where truth is becoming an endangered thing, the role of stories and cinema here at the temple of film; the role of film is incredibly critical. It can combat that entropy and communicate individual truths, societal truths, and affirm our shared humanity. What I’m doing here this year is in a way to counterbalance what Roy Cohn was doing last year.”

Cannes Director Thierry Fremaux also chimed in, saying film and TV will find a way to overcome Trump’s proposed tariffs.

“Cinema always finds a way of existing and reinventing itself,” Fremaux said. “The idea that American Cinema would be penalized by foreign countries, I think that is an idea worth discussing.”

The post Robert De Niro Slams Trump’s ‘Unacceptable’ Movie Tariffs at Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony appeared first on TheWrap.