​Kevin Spacey, Shia LaBeouf, Ezra Miller and James Franco Take Cannes

But will that public take them?

There was Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning. Paul Mescal and Nicole Kidman. A$AP Rocky and Rihanna. Alexander Skarsgård and Dakota Johnson. Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson. Charli XCX and Kristen Stewart. These were some of the major attendees at the 78th annual Cannes Film Festival, a prestigious, invitation-only affair that annually turns out a “who’s who?” of Hollywood as they present their latest films to rooms full of adoring festival-goers competing to see who can clap the longest.

And then there was Kevin Spacey. Shia LaBeouf. Ezra Miller. And James Franco. Their attendance individually was very Selina_Meyer_laughing_nervous_what_the_fuck.jpg but when listed as a collective, it did seem like Cannes was serving as a stealth image rehabilitation symposium. Cannes, of course, is no stranger to hosting men credibly accused of sex crimes (see: Johnny Depp, Roman Polanski) but this year felt like a parade. Or, as one Twitter user noted, “a literal abuser convention.” 

So what were they even doing there to begin with?