AceShowbiz - The prestigious Cannes Classics section will once again bring cinematic treasures to the Croisette, featuring a remarkable lineup that includes Pan's Labyrinth and The Fast and the Furious. This year’s program highlights a diverse selection of restored films, rediscovered gems, and documentaries celebrating film heritage, reaffirming Cannes Classics as a vital part of the festival’s official selection.

Since its inception nearly twenty years ago, Cannes Classics has become a cornerstone for cinephiles, showcasing meticulous restoration efforts from archives, studios, and cinematheques worldwide. The 2026 edition pays tribute to the late production designer Dean Tavoularis, renowned for his work on The Godfather and Apocalypse Now. This year’s program features an impressive 22 restored feature films, three short films, six documentaries, and two contemporary works.

Guillermo del Toro’s Pan's Labyrinth will be presented as a special pre-opening screening in a newly restored 4K version, marking the 20th anniversary of its Cannes debut. The film famously received a record-breaking 22-minute standing ovation at its premiere. Del Toro himself will attend the screening, adding to the event’s significance. At the other end of the festival schedule, Rob Cohen’s The Fast and the Furious, a landmark street-racing film from 2001, will be shown during a midnight slot at the Grand Théâtre Lumière. Cast members Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster are expected to be present, further elevating the excitement surrounding this restored classic.

The restored lineup spans multiple continents and cinematic eras. Highlights include Artavazd Pelechian’s quartet of films compiled in the Pelechian Project, Andrzej Wajda’s Man of Iron, Luchino Visconti’s The Innocent, and Akira Kurosawa’s Sugata Sanshiro. Other notable restorations include Jerzy Skolimowski’s Moonlighting and Giuseppe Patroni Griffi’s Metti una sera a cena, with Dario Argento scheduled to present the latter.

Beyond the restored classics, Cannes Classics continues to emphasize documentary filmmaking about cinema itself. The documentary program will feature Dernsie: The Amazing Life of Bruce Dern, with both Bruce Dern and his daughter Laura Dern attending the festival. Another documentary, Maverick: The Epic Adventures of David Lean, explores the legendary filmmaker’s career. Additional documentaries will examine the legacies of cinematic icons such as Vittorio De Sica and Chris Marker. Irish documentarian Mark Cousins returns with The Story of Documentary Film (The 70s), a comprehensive look at documentary cinema during that decade.

The festival’s documentary slate also includes two contemporary films: The Golden Age by Bérenger Thouin, a sweeping fictional portrait of a woman navigating the 20th century, and Jean-Gabriel Périot’s A Life, A Manifesto, a documentary tracing the life of the critic, filmmaker, and revolutionary Michèle Firk.

In addition to these features, three short films will be screened as part of a special program featuring works by Jia Zhang-Ke, Dustin Yellin, and Amirhossein Shojaei. The program is expected to attract notable talent, including Zhao Tao, Paul Rudd, and Darren Aronofsky, who will be present at Cannes for the screenings.

Screenings will be held at various venues across the festival, including the Buñuel and Agnès Varda theaters, as well as the open-air Cinéma de la Plage, allowing audiences to experience restored masterpieces and cinematic explorations in diverse settings.

The full lineup of restored prints is as follows:

• Pan’s Labyrinth (Guillermo del Toro, 2006)
• The Fast and the Furious (Rob Cohen, 2001)
• Pelechian Project (Artavazd Pelechian, 1966-1975)
• Sierra de Teruel (Espoir) (André Malraux, 1938)
• Moonlighting (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1982)
• Metti una sera a cena (Love Circle) (Giuseppe Patroni Griffi, 1968)
• Amma Ariyan (Report to Mother) (John Abraham, 1986)
• Farewell My Concubine (Chen Kaige, 1993)
• Man of Iron (Andrzej Wajda, 1981)
• Eva (Maria Plyta, 1953)
• The Devils (Ken Russell, 1971)
• La casa del angel (The House of Angel) (Leopoldo Torre Nilsson, 1957)
• La ciociara (Two Women) (Vittorio De Sica, 1960)
• La dérive (The Drift) (Paula Delsol, 1964)
• La symphonie pastorale (Pastoral Symphony) (Jean Delannoy, 1946)
• L'innocente (The Innocent) (Luchino Visconti, 1976)
• Lu Bing Hua (The Dull-Ice Flower) (Yang Li-Kuo, 1989)
• Machine Gun Kelly (Roger Corman, 1958)
• Meeuwen sterven in de haven (Seagulls Die in the Harbour) (Roland Verhavert, Rik Kuypers, Ivo Michiels, 1955)
• Sugata Sanshiro (Akira Kurosawa, 1943)
• Tilaï (Idrissa Ouedraogo, 1990)
• The Stranger (Orson Welles, 1945)

The documentary selections include:

• The Story of Documentary Film (The 70s) (Mark Cousins, 2026)
• Dernsie: The Amazing Life of Bruce Dern (Mike Mendez, 2026)
• Maverick: The Epic Adventures of David Lean (Barnaby Thompson, 2026)
• Vittorio De Sica - Staging Life (Francesco Zippel, 2026)
• Mon Coluche à moi (My Coluche) (Michel Denisot, Camille Bruere, Julie Lazare)
• Nostalgia for the Future (Brecht Debackere, 2026)

The contemporary films featured are:

• The Golden Age (Bérenger Thouin, 2026)
• A Life, A Manifesto (Jean-Gabriel Périot, 2026)

The short film program includes:

• Goodnight Lamby (Dustin Yellin, 2026)
• Torino Shadow (Jia Zhang-Ke, 2026)
• Playground (Zamine Bazi) (Amirhossein Shojaei, 2025)

With such a rich and varied slate, Cannes Classics 2026 promises to be an exceptional celebration of cinema’s enduring legacy, offering audiences a unique chance to revisit landmark films and discover restored treasures alongside new documentary perspectives on the art of filmmaking.