Chapter 157: Palme d’Or (2)
Chapter 157: Palme d’Or (2)
“……?”
I never expected my name to be called.
I knew the unspoken rule of the Cannes Film Festival.
Even though we found out in such a deflating way because of the jury president’s mistake, I was still quietly happy inside after hearing that our film had won the Palme d’Or.
But… how?
Best Actor—me?
Could it be that the Palme d’Or really was just a slip of the tongue?
Thoughts spun in my head, but I couldn’t just sit there blankly.
Director Baek Junbong was pounding my back hard from beside me.
“Sunho! Get up there! It’s your award!”
There was no way the director didn’t know Cannes’ rule.
Even so, he showed not a trace of discomfort.
He was genuinely happy, pushing me toward the stage.
Right.
My name got called, so—
I fixed my clothes and went up.
From up there, everyone in the audience looked confused.
They were clapping, but their eyes were full of question marks.
I needed to give an acceptance speech, but the murmuring wouldn’t die down.
This is too chaotic.
First, I needed to take control of the room.
Whatever the reason, this was my moment.
I stood in front of the mic stand and tapped the microphone.
Tap— tap—
The sound rang through the speakers, and everyone’s attention gathered on me.
Then I opened my mouth with an easy smile.
“Thank you very much. This is an unbelievable honor.”
A different kind of surprise—this time in a good way—spread across people’s faces.
They probably hadn’t expected fluent French to come out of my mouth.
Now that I had their focus, I needed to use my time well.
“First, I sincerely thank the jury for giving me such a great award. As an actor, it is already an honor just to stand on a stage called Cannes, but Best Actor… it feels like a dream.”
At my heartfelt words, applause began to ripple through the seats.
“This award is not mine alone. I want to share this honor with Director Baek Junbong, who read my gaze and breath within silence, and with every staff member who worked through hardship together. Thank you.”
A clean, humble speech.
But ending it there would be a bit bland.
I could use this situation and add a touch of wit.
“And… tonight looks like it’s going to be a very dynamic night. I’ll keep the words ‘It isn’t over until it’s over’ in mind, and I’ll keep looking forward to the end.”
Smiling, I stepped back from the microphone.
Clapclapclapclapclap—!
Wheeeeee—!
Hot applause and whistles spilled out from everywhere.
That closing line should’ve steadied the messy room a little.
As if proving I was right, the PD holding the camera grinned and waved a thumbs-up.
The Cannes awards ceremony had become a hot topic in Korea too.
[Live viewers: 641,259]
Reporters on the ground had predicted high chances of Korean wins.
So even though it was past 3 a.m. in Korea, many people rubbed sleepy eyes and kept watching the YouTube livestream.
Please, let us win at least one award..!
Let’s go, Ryu Sunho Best Actor! Everyone’s saying his acting was insane!
Gong Hajin has a chance too ㅇㅇ A dual role is a cheat key
If it’s the Palme d’Or, that’s even better..!
Just win somethingㅋㅋ As long as it’s not an empty-handed ending
While chat kept pouring with cheers and hope, the jury president suddenly let the Palme d’Or slip by mistake.
The chat window flew up at insane speed.
????
What did he just say?
He said “Mueon:ga,” right?
For real?? Palme d’Or???
What is thisㅋㅋㅋㅋ That’s an all-time broadcast accident
Are we supposed to be happy?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ This is hilarious
Just congratulate firstㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Nice!!!
Oh but then Ryu Sunho isn’t getting Best Actor, right
Why? Why can’t he get it?
Traditionally, Palme d’Or winners can’t win other categories. No double wins
Damn.. then does Ryu Sunho go home empty-handed?
Tch, a lot of critics picked Ryu Sunho for Best Actor too, this sucks..
Still, the Palme d’Or is way bigger. It’s bigger than director + film awards combined
True true, since when did Korea have the Palme d’Or on depositㅋㅋㅋㅋ
The chat was a mess.
There were some spoiled, “good problem” complaints mixed in, but overall it seemed like people were accepting the Palme d’Or as fact and shifting into celebration.
But then—
“The winner of Best Actor is… Congratulations! Ryu Sunho of Mueon:ga!”
The moment Ryu Sunho was announced as Best Actor, the mood flipped again.
??? What, for real?
Didn’t you say if you win Best Actor you can’t get the Palme d’Or!
Then “Mueon:ga” isn’t the Palme d’Or?
Reverse spoiler? Did the jury president bait us?
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅅㅂ What kind of push and pull is this? They’re yanking us around
At least we won one award ㅅㅅㅅㅅ
True true, the Palme d’Or is a shame but Best Actor is still huge!
Still feels like they gave it then took it backㅋㅋㅋ They got our hopes up…
Regret dripped all over the chat.
It felt like falling from the greatest joy down to a moderate joy.
Meanwhile, Ryu Sunho delivered his acceptance speech in French without even trembling, and people watching poured out admiration.
ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Every time his language-genius moment shows up, it’s just shocking
At 23, five languages at native level + Cannes Best Actor… he’s not human
Speech was clean and cool
Look at the French actors blinking at himㅋㅋㅋ
Thanks to Ryu Sunho’s closing line, the ceremony’s tension and anticipation didn’t vanish.
The awards continued.
I thought the jury president ruined the ceremony, but it actually got more funㅋㅋㅋㅋ
For realㅋㅋ This is more nerve-wracking and fun than most thriller moviesㅋㅋㅋ
Like someone said, the jury president’s mistake made the ceremony even more gripping.
Everyone was waiting for the ending of the Palme d’Or that had fallen into a maze.
Even at the venue, people whispered.
“I’ve never been this tense at an awards ceremony in my life.”
“If this was planned from the start, John Nicholson deserves respect.”
“But shouldn’t we exclude Mueon:ga for now?”
Where would this chaos end?
At last, only the Palme d’Or announcement remained.
Actors and directors watched the stage with hands clasped as if praying.
They were grabbing back the expectations they had set down, waiting only for the result.
Jury President John Nicholson stepped up to the microphone again.
“Ahem… then now, I will announce the Palme d’Or winner…”
With a solemn face, he opened the envelope and shouted.
“The Palme d’Or goes to… Congratulations! Mueon:ga!”
“…???!!!”
The audience erupted into uproar.
“What?”
“Really?”
“A double win?”
“Are you sure? Check again!”
Some people demanded confirmation.
John Nicholson held up the paper with the winner list toward the audience to show them.
On it, Mueon:ga was written clearly.
“For real…?”
“This is insane!”
“How can this happen…?”
Only then, as if the tension finally released, John Nicholson grinned at the audience.
Now you get why I was so nervous earlier, right?
At the same time, he looked at the other jurors and recalled what happened last night.
The night they chose the winners.
“Then the Palme d’Or… there can be no dissent.”
“Yes. Mueon:ga. Unanimous.”
“Wait. Then what happens to Best Actor?”
From that moment, the debate exploded.
Anyone could see the truly overwhelming performance belonged to Ryu Sunho, but if they followed precedent, they couldn’t pick him because of the no-double-win tradition.
But they also couldn’t switch the Palme d’Or away from the film they had chosen unanimously.
In the end, it started leaning toward a compromise—give Best Actor to the second-best performance.
But—
“No. If Ryu doesn’t get it, this award has no meaning. That’s deceiving the audience.”
Some jurors, led by Evan Harris, strongly objected.
“If you trap cinema inside the form called tradition, it won’t progress. Compromising like this is what actually damages Cannes’ authority!”
Normally, this wouldn’t even be something to fight over, and they would compromise and move on.
But anyone could see it: the powerful impact of “Mueon:ga” was more than eighty percent Ryu Sunho’s performance.
The film’s use of a silent format depended heavily on the actor’s ability.
Long-held tradition, or acknowledging an overwhelming performance.
They clashed without an easy answer and pushed past midnight toward dawn.
Then Jury President John Nicholson made a decision.
“I’ll take responsibility and accept all criticism. Just this once, let’s give Best Actor to Ryu Sunho.”
People were shocked, because John Nicholson had been on the side of keeping tradition.
“Are you serious?”
“If you think about it, the rule that double wins are impossible wasn’t a rule that existed from the beginning, was it?”
Evan Harris backed him up.
“Right. It’s only a rule that appeared after protests in 2001, when the Palme d’Or winner swept major awards.”
“So I’ll take the heat. Best Actor goes to Ryu Sunho. Why circle around when the answer is right in front of us?”
That was how the decision was made.
Director Baek Junbong still looked around with his mouth open, like it hadn’t sunk in.
After Ryu Sunho won Best Actor, he had already folded away any hope for the Palme d’Or.
But this time, Ryu Sunho walked over first, took Director Baek’s hand, and said, “Director, please go up. This is your award.”
Holy shit, what is thisㅋㅋㅋㅋ You said it was impossibleㅋㅋㅋㅋ
What is this rule-breakingㅋㅋㅋ
It’s definitely not supposed to happen, so why is it real..?
Then does that mean Korea got two Palme d’Ors in ten years?
But Gong Hajin’s face is totally rotten;; Even if his movie didn’t win, a fellow Korean did—at least congratulate him
Why care about thatㅋㅋㅋ Maybe he was thinking something else. Just celebrate the good news
This is insaneㅋㅋㅋㅋ They broke tradition and it’s Palme d’Or + Best Actor = Korea
Crazyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Korea forever, seriously
Kim Gu, sir… are you watching..?
An unprecedented situation.
But because it was nothing but good news for Korea, the internet exploded even though it was dawn.
And the next day.
When morning came, even more people heard the news late, and it grew even hotter.
[“Mueon:ga” achieves the Cannes Palme d’Or… the strength of Korean cinema]
[Breaking Cannes’ taboo… “Mueon:ga” sweeps Palme d’Or and Best Actor together]
[The jury’s conclusion: “We couldn’t ignore this acting…”]
[A night that made the impossible possible—Ryu Sunho rewrites Cannes’ rules]
When the public erupted, the press reacting was the natural next step.
“Find out the ‘Mueon:ga’ team’s return schedule! We have to go to the airport!”
“They’re returning straight from Cannes tomorrow! ETA 3 p.m.!”
Every newsroom was desperate to get interviews the moment the “Mueon:ga” team returned to Korea.
So the next day, the arrivals hall at Incheon International Airport was packed with an unprecedented number of reporters, lined up in ranks.
Terrestrial, cable, comprehensive channels, online outlets—every media crew in Korea had gathered.
“I still can’t believe it. How do you sweep both Palme d’Or and Best Actor at once? That’s never happened in Korean film history.”
“This isn’t just Korean film history. It’s going to be remembered in world cinema history too. They smashed a strict rule.”
“Seriously. I got chills. When the jury president made that mistake, I thought Cannes was ruined, but it’s going to be remembered as all-time.”
“But Ryu Sunho is the real deal. How do you win Best Actor at Cannes just two years after debut?”
“The insane part is the strict Cannes jury broke their own rule just to give him the award.”
“He’s built different. Acting, star power—Ryu Sunho didn’t save the nation in a past life, he founded it.”
“If he comes out holding the trophy today, it’ll be a perfect picture.”
Then.
An arrival notice appeared on the electronic board near the gate.
The murmuring died down.
Hundreds of camera lenses aimed at the gate doors at once.
“He’s coming out! He’s coming out!”
With someone’s shout, the automatic doors slid open.
Director Baek Junbong walked out with a bright smile, holding up the Palme d’Or trophy.
Clickclickclickclickclick—!
WAAAAAAH—!
Camera flashes and cheers poured down.
My ears went numb.
“Director! Congratulations!”
“This is truly a great achievement!”
“We respect you, Director!”
Behind Director Baek Junbong, Moon Ganghyeok followed.
He looked so stunned by the explosive attention that he was clutching his chest.
“Ganghyeok! Just one word!”
“Look this way!”
“Moon Ganghyeok is amazing!”
A scene even hotter than an Olympic gold medalist’s homecoming.
But strangely, the most important person was nowhere to be seen.
Reporters’ cameras kept zooming in and out, like they were searching for something.
“Where’s Sunho?”
“Where did Actor Ryu Sunho go? Isn’t he out yet?”
“What is it?”
Soon the reporters pulled their eyes off their viewfinders and craned toward the gate.
Staff were streaming out behind Director Baek Junbong and Moon Ganghyeok, but nowhere was Ryu Sunho.
That kind of striking face wouldn’t just vanish into a crowd.
“Did he go to the bathroom?”
“Or did the crowd get too crazy, so he slipped out through another gate?”
“No way. He’s supposed to return in triumph with the Best Actor trophy. There’s no way.”
The murmuring grew louder.
Then it happened.
A showbiz reporter staring at their phone widened their eyes and shouted.
“Huh?!”
“What?”
“A Ryu Sunho article just dropped!”
“What does it say?”
“It says Actor Ryu Sunho didn’t come back! He’s still in Cannes!”
“What???”
Question marks seemed to float over everyone’s heads.
The entertainment reporter hurriedly read out the article.
“As soon as the Cannes Film Festival schedule ended, he’s attending Cannes Lions right next door… I mean, the Cannes International Festival of Creativity?!”