John Travolta awarded a surprise honorary Palme d’or at Cannes Film Festival

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John Travolta accepts his honorary Palme d’or during the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival at Plage Macé on May 15, 2026, in Cannes, France. (Aurore Marechal/Getty Images)

John Travolta has been awarded a surprise honorary Palme d’or.

The honor was given to Travolta before the world premiere of his directorial debut film, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, at the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival.

According to Deadline, Travolta received a standing ovation and called the Palme d’or “an honor beyond the Oscars.”

A sizzle reel showing moments from Travolta’s film career was also shown. After watching the clips, the outlet reports Travolta said, “You see your whole life before you like I did in this. I feel a mixture of things, every image has memory and it’s very emotional. And the soundtrack that goes with all those memories. I’ve been doing film most of my life. Eighty-five percent of my life, so it was really nice to see that.”

Propeller One-Way Night Coach is an adaptation of the 1997 book that Travolta also wrote. An official description of the film from the Cannes Film Festival describes it as being inspired by Travolta’s childhood memories, “from his first airplane flight to the unforgettable people and stories he has collected over the years.”

It follows a young airplane enthusiast named Jeff (Clark Shotwell) and his mother (Kelly Eviston-Quinnett), who set off on a one-way cross-country trip to Hollywood.

Propeller One-Way Night Coach will debut to Apple TV on May 29.