Harrison Ford was moved to the verge of tears while receiving a lifetime achievement award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
The 80-year-old actor was attending the prestigious ceremony in celebration of his latest film, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny – the fifth and final instalment of the adventure franchise.
It was here that he was awarded the honorary Palme d’Or award for lifetime achievement, and greeted with thunderous applause as he arrived. Taking place last night (May 18), the acting veteran was also shown a compilation of some of the biggest performances from across his career, and seen getting visibly emotional by the footage.
“They say when you’re about to die, you see your life flash before your eyes,” Ford said. “I just saw my life before my eyes.”
He proceeded to thank his wife, Calista Flockhart, for supporting his career throughout their relationship and “enabling” his dreams. He also spoke of the privilege he felt to work alongside the cast for the upcoming Indiana Jones film, which includes Mads Mikkelsen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and director James Mangold.
“I’m very moved by this,” he continued. “But I got a movie you ought to see. It’s right behind me. So let me get out of the way and thank you again for this.”
Following his speech at the ceremony, footage of the heart-warming moment has been making the rounds on social media. “Presented with a lifetime-achievement clip montage and an honorary Golden Palme, Harrison Ford is on the verge of tears at Cannes,” tweeted The New York Times reporter Kyle Buchanan, sharing a clip of the moment.
Rotten Tomatoes also acknowledged the moment with an Instagram update: “A massive standing ovation brings Harrison Ford to tears during the Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny premiere,” the caption read.
Presented with a lifetime-achievement clip montage and an honorary Golden Palme, Harrison Ford is on the verge of tears at Cannes pic.twitter.com/QUth998SC8
— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) May 18, 2023
The film in question is the last instalment of the long-running Indiana Jones franchise, and sees Ford return for his role as the whip-cracking archaeologist and adventurer.
It is also the first of the films to not be directed by Steven Spielberg – who first kicked off the franchise with Raiders Of The Lost Ark in 1981 – instead, the role was fulfilled by James Mangold (The Wolverine, Logan, Ford V Ferrari).
Last month, Steven Spielberg shared his reaction after seeing the new film for the first time. “Bob Iger had a screening for a lot of the Disney executives, and I came to the screening along with the director James Mangold,” he explained. “Everybody loved the movie. It’s really, really a good Indiana Jones film. I’m really proud of what Jim has done with it.”
Additionally, critics have had mixed reactions to the final chapter, with some praising it as delivering “exactly what you expect from an Indiana Jones adventure”, while others criticised it as being “a belaboured reminder that some relics are better left where and when they belong.”