A French director is suing the Cannes Film Festival for not showing his 2009 film Teenagers. He is accusing the festival organizers of “homophobia” for not showing the gay drama.
According to the Guardian, Paul Verhoeven, 73, claims that his film would have the power to “turn young people away from terrorism, suicide, delinquency and homophobia” during a deposition to Paris judges.
However, the film might have actually been rejected because it was bad. Variety notes that the film got negative reviews when it was released, even though it did pick up a Best Narrative Feature nomination at the California Film Awards.
Verhoeven’s lawsuit is believed to be the first time a director has sued the legendary festival for not showing his film.
In addition, local journalists who cover Cannes called the lawsuit silly because Cannes has been known to award films that deal with gay issues. That includes Abdellatif Kachiche’s acclaimed 2013 Palme D’Or winner Blue Is The Warmest Color.
For the record, Verhoeven is not related to Danish director Paul Verhoeven, who directed Total Recall, Basic Instinct and Robocop.