Pictures via various distributors
The Cannes Film Festival isn’t just the most glamorous red carpet in global cinema—it’s also one of the biggest film launch pads. While France’s strict theatrical window laws mean Netflix’s in-house original movies often have to bypass the festival’s main competition, the streaming giant has long used the Croisette as its personal hunting ground to buy up the best indie films and international awards contenders, and 2026 is no different.
Before we dive into what Netflix bought this year, let’s look back at some of the streamer’s biggest historical Cannes pickups.
Netflix’s biggest and most high-profile acquisition undoubtedly came in 2024 when it dropped a staggering $12 million for the US and UK rights to Jacques Audiard’s genre-bending crime musical Emilia Pérez, a massive bet that paid off through awards season (mostly, anyway, but that’s not a story that needs to be retold). Just the year prior, in 2023, Netflix made major waves by dropping $11 million on the North American rights to Todd Haynes’ critically acclaimed drama May December.
All of Netflix’s Previous Cannes Pickups
Let’s take a look back at all the movies Netflix has acquired from Cannes:
2016
2016 was the year Netflix first planted its flag as an aggressive buyer on the Croisette, scooping up a massive haul of international indie cinema and market packages.
- Divines – Netflix secured the worldwide rights to Houda Benyamina’s acclaimed French thriller, which went on to win the Camera d’Or for best directorial debut.
- Aquarius – The streamer picked up the rights for North America, the UK, Asia, Australia, and Latin America for Kleber Mendonça Filho’s gripping Brazilian drama.
- Wheelman – Packaged at the Cannes market, Netflix pre-bought the worldwide rights to this action-thriller starring Frank Grillo.
- The Day Will Come (Danish drama)
- Very Big Shot (Lebanese feature debut)
- Journey to Greenland (French comedy) – Has been removed.
- Mercenary / Mercenaire (French sports drama) – This has since been removed.
- Raman Raghav 2.0 (Indian thriller)
2017
2017 was also the year of controversy. Netflix Originals Okja and The Meyerowitz Stories premiered in competition (leading to a subsequent ban and boos), and Netflix shifted its strategy purely to acquisitions, targeting two of the festival’s most highly praised features.
- Bubbles – Netflix dropped a staggering $20 million to acquire the worldwide rights to a stop-motion animated Michael Jackson biopic told from the perspective of his pet chimpanzee. Taika Waititi was attached to co-direct, but due to scheduling conflicts (and the ensuing Leaving Neverland documentary), Waititi stepped away from the project in 2019, and Netflix subsequently pulled out, leaving the film unmade.
2018
- Happy as Lazzaro – Netflix swooped in to buy the North American and Latin American rights to Alice Rohrwacher’s enchanting Italian fable, which ended up winning the festival’s Best Screenplay award.
- Girl – The streamer acquired the North and Latin American rights to Lukas Dhont’s deeply moving Belgian drama, which took home the Camera d’Or.
2019
Netflix had one of its most critical Cannes triumphs in 2019, buying two films that would go on to be massive critical darlings for the streamer.
- Atlantics – Netflix acquired the worldwide rights (excluding a few territories) to Mati Diop’s feature debut. The Senegalese supernatural romantic drama made history when Diop became the first Black woman to compete for the Palme d’Or, ultimately walking away with the Grand Prix (second place).
- I Lost My Body – Further expanding its prestige animation footprint, Netflix nabbed the global rights to Jérémy Clapin’s bizarre, beautiful French animated film, which won the top prize at Critics’ Week and went on to land an Oscar nomination.
2020 & 2021
Despite a canceled in-person festival in 2020 and a delayed one in 2021, Netflix remained active in the market.
- DNA (ADN) (2020) – Acquired the English-language rights (US, UK, Canada, Australia, NZ) and select other territories to Maïwenn’s French drama, which was an Official Selection of the canceled 2020 festival.
- The Stronghold (BAC Nord) (2021) – Acquired the global streaming rights to Cédric Jimenez’s gritty French police action thriller.
2022
- Pain Hustlers – In one of the biggest Cannes market deals in history, Netflix dropped a staggering $50 million for the global rights to David Yates’ pharmaceutical crime comedy starring Emily Blunt and Chris Evans.
- The Stranger – Following its premiere in the Un Certain Regard section, Netflix acquired the worldwide rights (outside of Australia) to Thomas M. Wright’s incredibly tense psychological thriller starring Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris.
2023
- May December – In a massive $11 million deal, Netflix acquired the North American rights to Todd Haynes’ dark, campy drama starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore. The film became a major awards season player and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
2024
Picture Credit: Netflix
- Emilia Pérez – In a whopping $12 million deal, Netflix acquired the US and UK rights to Jacques Audiard’s audacious Mexican cartel musical. The film was the talk of the festival and became a prime Oscar vehicle for the streamer.
- Monsanto – Packaged at the Cannes market, Netflix picked up the rights to this upcoming legal thriller directed by John Lee Hancock and starring Glen Powell (later replaced by Jonathan Bailey), Laura Dern, and Anthony Mackie.
2025
- Nouvelle Vague – Netflix acquired the US rights to Richard Linklater’s French-language dramedy. Starring Zoey Deutch, the film serves as a love letter to the French New Wave, chronicling the chaotic production behind Jean-Luc Godard’s cinematic masterpiece, Breathless.
2026 Netflix Cannes Pickups
Now, with the 2026 Cannes Film Festival wrapping up, Netflix is back at it again. From a record-breaking Spanish acquisition to a star-studded eco-satire, here is our roundup of Netflix’s biggest 2026 Cannes acquisitions so far:
La Bola Negra (The Black Ball)
- Directors: Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (Los Javis)
- Cast: Penélope Cruz, Glenn Close, Miguel Bernardeau, Guitarricadelafuente
- Netflix Rights: United States
- Reported Deal: $4M – $5M
Courtesy of Movistar Plus
If there is one true breakout at Cannes this year, it’s La Bola Negra. Earning a jaw-dropping 20-minute standing ovation—coming incredibly close to the festival’s all-time record set by Pan’s Labyrinth in 2006—this Palme d’Or frontrunner sparked a massive bidding war. Netflix successfully fended off rivals like A24, Neon, and Mubi to secure the US rights in what is being called a record-breaking domestic deal for a non-English-language title.
The Spanish-language film tells the interconnected stories of three men across three different eras (1932, 1937, and 2017) whose lives are intimately linked by sexuality, pain, and one of the last unfinished works by the legendary Spanish poet Federico García Lorca. Netflix is reportedly planning a major awards campaign in the vein of Emilia Pérez, complete with a multi-week theatrical window.
Sacrifice
- Director: Romain Gavras
- Cast: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Evans, Salma Hayek Pinault, Vincent Cassel, John Malkovich, Charli xcx, Ambika Mod, and Jonatan “Yung Lean” Leandoer
- Netflix Rights: United States
Netflix has snatched up (and confirmed) the US rights to this wildly entertaining eco-satire, which marks the English-language debut of director Romain Gavras. Boasting arguably the most star-studded cast of the entire festival, Sacrifice follows Joan (Anya Taylor-Joy), a zealot driven by a volcanic prophecy who takes it upon herself to save the world from a fiery reckoning.
Joan and her militia of mystical disciples hijack a glamorous charity gala, taking three high-profile hostages: a desperate movie star named Mike Tyler (Chris Evans), the richest man in the world, and a girl who is just plain unlucky. As they are forced on an epic, hilarious journey through forest and fire, Mike faces the ultimate question: what is he willing to sacrifice for humanity? While international buyers will grant the film a theatrical corridor overseas, Netflix is reportedly eyeing a late summer/fall release stateside.
Gentle Monster
- Director: Marie Kreutzer
- Cast: Léa Seydoux, Laurence Rupp
- Netflix Rights: North America, UK, Australia, New Zealand (Closing Deal – IndieWire says its complete)
Netflix is heavily leaning into its Oscar game this year, closing a deal for this buzzy Cannes Competition title. Word on the Croisette is that Netflix views this film as a prime Best Actress vehicle for Léa Seydoux, who notably sings onscreen for the very first time in her career.
Directed by Austrian filmmaker Marie Kreutzer (Corsage), Gentle Monster is inspired by a harrowing true article in the German newspaper Die Zeit. Seydoux stars as an experimental pianist who relocates to the countryside with her family, only to face a waking nightmare: the realization that her husband (Laurence Rupp) is living a second life online as a pedophile pornographer.
In Waves
- Director: Phuong Mai Nguyen
- Voice Cast: Stephanie Hsu, Will Sharpe
- Netflix Rights: Global (excluding France)
- Reported Deal: Mid-seven figures
In Netflix’s first major deal out of the 2026 festival, the streamer swooped in to win a highly competitive bidding war for this gorgeous animated romance. In Waves, which opened Critics’ Week to rave reviews, is an adaptation of AJ Dungo’s acclaimed 2019 graphic memoir.
Set in Los Angeles, the coming-of-age story follows AJ, a shy teenager who loves drawing and skateboarding, and Kristen, a passionate surfer. The two fall deeply in love and plan a vibrant future together until Kristen is struck by a sudden illness. With a stellar voice cast led by Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu and BAFTA winner Will Sharpe, this tearjerker is poised to be another crown jewel in Netflix’s ever-expanding indie animation library.
