Phoenix 24
The Spanish filmmaker connected their disagreement at Cannes with the actor’s controversial conduct at the 2022 Academy Awards.
MADRID.— Pedro Almodóvar has renewed his criticism of Will Smith while promoting Bitter Christmas, the 24th feature film of his career. The 76-year-old director recalled their public disagreement at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival over whether streaming productions should compete for major cinematic awards. Almodóvar said Smith made “very silly” comments and added that the American actor had “very bad taste.”
As president of the Cannes jury, Almodóvar argued that films unavailable in theaters should not receive the festival’s top honors. Smith, serving on the same jury after working on Netflix’s Bright, defended streaming platforms as a way to expand audiences and encourage people to discover different kinds of cinema. Their exchange became an early symbol of the industry’s growing conflict between theatrical traditions and digital distribution.
Almodóvar later connected that disagreement with Smith’s assault on comedian Chris Rock during the 2022 Academy Awards. The Spanish director witnessed the incident from inside the theater and subsequently described Smith’s acceptance speech as resembling that of a cult leader. In his latest interview, he mimicked the slap while suggesting that the episode revealed another side of the Hollywood star.
The comments emerged as Almodóvar continues defending what he calls the hypnotic experience of the large screen. He describes Bitter Christmas, a metafictional exploration of art, memory and personal appropriation, as the riskiest film he has ever made. Behind Almodóvar’s criticism of one actor lies a larger struggle over whether cinema will remain a collective artistic ritual or become another stream of disposable content.
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