CANNES, France — Denzel Washington received a surprise career tribute at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival when he was awarded an honorary Palme d’Or during the world premiere of Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest. The award marked a historic moment, as it was Washington’s first-ever appearance at the prestigious festival in his 50-year career.
Before the screening, Cannes festival director Thierry Frémaux introduced a montage of Washington’s most iconic performances, including Malcolm X, Mo’ Better Blues, Glory, and Training Day. Following the reel, longtime collaborator Spike Lee presented the honorary Palme d’Or, calling Washington “my brother from another mother.”
A visibly moved Washington said the award came as a complete surprise.
Highest 2 Lowest, directed by Lee, is a modern-day New York remake of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 classic High and Low. Washington stars as a music mogul caught in a tense kidnapping plot. The film also features A$AP Rocky as Yung Felon, an ambitious rapper determined to rise to the top.
The ensemble cast includes Ilfenesh Hadera, Jeffrey Wright, Ice Spice (in her film debut), Dean Winters, John Douglas Thompson, LaChanze, Aubrey Joseph, Michael Potts, and Wendell Pierce.
This marks the fifth collaboration between Lee and Washington. “I’m just glad we got five in,” Lee said earlier this year.
Highest 2 Lowest hits theaters on August 22 and will begin streaming on Apple TV+ on September 5.
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