Denzel Washington gets surprise honorary Palme d’Or at Cannes

Cannes Film Festival 2025: Denzel Washington got a career-defining surprise as he attended the world premiere of his latest film, Highest 2 Lowest. At the Spike Lee film’s premiere, Denzel was awarded an honorary Palme d’Or.

This is the first time that the Oscar winning actor attended the Cannes Film Festival, after 50 years of giving us incredible films.

Denzel Washington gets award at Cannes

Before he was awarded the big award, Cannes festival director Thierry Fremaux introduced a montage of Denzel Washington’s films including Malcolm X and Mo Better Blues. Incidentally, these were both directed by Spike Lee, the director of his current film. They also showed his films like Glory and Training Day.

Spike Lee then presented the actor-director with the honorary Palme d’Or.

Spike Lee handed off the Palme d’O trophy to Denzel while calling the actor “my brother from another mother.” Washington said that the honor was a complete surprise.

Directed by Lee, Highest 2 Lowest is an English-language remake of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 film High and Low. The current film reimagines the film which is set in modern day New York and stars Washington as a music mogul tied up in a life-or-death ransom plot. Superstar rapper A$AP Rocky appears as Yung Felon, an aspiring rapper who will stop at nothing to achieve his dream.

Alongside Washington and Rocky, Highest 2 Lowest features Ilfenesh Hadera, Jeffrey Wright, Ice Spice (in her film debut), Dean Winters, John Douglas Thompson, LaChanze, Aubrey Joseph, Michael Potts and Wendell Pierce.

The film marks the fifth collaboration between Lee and Washington.

Denzel Washington’s Highest 2 Lowest will be released in theaters August 22 and stream on Apple TV+ starting September 5.