Peter Jackson first visited Cannes in 1988 to sell his debut film Bad Taste, and he returned in 2002 to preview The Fellowship of the Ring. He said the Cannes festival has always celebrated bold, visionary cinema, and he expressed gratitude to the Festival de Cannes for being recognized among filmmakers and artists whose work inspires him. This award places Jackson in a lineage of recent honorees; last year, honorary Palme d'Or prizes were awarded to Robert De Niro and Denzel Washington. Jackson has not made a feature film since 2014's The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, but since then, he made the World War I documentary They Shall Not Grow Old in 2018 for the BBC and The Beatles: Get Back in 2021 for Apple TV+.
Jackson is currently working on at least three scripts for feature films, including a new Lord of the Rings adaptation, though the specific nature of this adaptation has not been disclosed. According to The Independent, Peter Jackson and his team are producing and have been writing The Hunt for Gollum, which Andy Serkis will direct next year. The other two feature film scripts he is developing remain unspecified. Jackson has enjoyed working on documentaries and various projects with The Beatles, and according to The Independent, he described this work as something he has relished and that will likely continue.
This is one of the greatest privileges of my career.
Beyond filmmaking, Jackson is more excited about a scientific project to bring the Moa bird back from extinction than about any film he could make. According to The Independent, he described de-extincting the Moa as just as exciting, if not more exciting, than any film he could possibly make, and he added that seeing the giant Moa brought back would be a level of excitement that would supersede anything at this point in time. The current status and timeline of this scientific project are not known. The 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival is scheduled to run from 12 to 23 May, and Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar has a chance to win his first Palme d'Or in Cannes, though the specific film he is entering has not been identified. It is also unclear whether Jackson will attend the festival in person to receive the honorary Palme d'Or.
This festival has always celebrated bold, visionary cinema, and I’m incredibly grateful to the Festival de Cannes for being recognized among the filmmakers and the artists whose work continues to inspire me.
We are producing and have been writing The Hunt for Gollum, which Andy Serkis is going to direct next year.
I've enjoyed working on docs, whether they show I’ve grown old or not, and obviously the Get Back Beatles project. I've enjoyed doing various things with The Beatles, which is great, and that'll probably carry on.
To me, de-extincting the Moa [bird] would be just as exciting, if not more exciting, than any film I could possibly make.
I've made a lot of movies, but to see the giant Moa brought back would be a level of excitement that I think would supersede anything at this point in time.