While stars took center stage at theCannesFilm Festivallast week, a festival staffer also made headlines for her interactions with celebrities on the red carpet.
FourCannesattendees — actor and former Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland, Dominican actor Massiel Taveras, Korean actor and K-pop star Yoona, and Ukrainian model Sawa Pontyjska — had apparent run-ins with the samesecurity guardon theCannesred carpet earlier this month.
Here’s what to know about theCannesred carpet security guard incidents that went viral at the famed French film festival, which took place between May 14 and May 25.
What happened with the Cannes security guard?
Four celebrities had apparent altercations with the sameCannesstaffer on the red carpet, which were shared on social media.
Kelly Rowland
The first incident occurred on May 21 when Kelly Rowland was walking the Cannes red carpet for the screening of “Marcello Mio.”
Rowland, 43, was ascending the famous red steps into the Palais des Festivals when a security guard extended her arm behind Rowland’s back, appearing to guide her up the stairs.
In a video of the moment shared by an X user, Rowland paused for a moment on the stairs and turned to wave to the crowd below. At that moment, the security guard barred the singer with her arm.
Rowland then continued up the stairs for another second, but soon stopped to address the security guard. While the video did not capture what the singer was saying, she pointed forcefully at the guard and seemed to be speaking firmly.
The heated moment quickly went viral, and the “Mea Culpa” star addressed the incident two days later in an interview with the Associated Press at another Cannes event.
“The woman knows what happened. I know what happened,” Rowland said. “I have a boundary, and I stand by those boundaries, and that is it.”
She also appeared to suggest that discrimination played a factor in the incident.
“There were other women that attended that carpet who did not quite look like me, and they didn’t get scolded or pushed off or told to get off,” she added. “I stood my ground, and she felt like she had to stand hers, but I stood my ground.”
Massiel Taveras
On May 22, Dominican actor Massiel Taveras clashed with the same security guard while attending a screening of “Le Comte De Monte-Cristo.”
Taveras, 39, paused on the red steps to display the extra-long train of her white gown, which featured an image of Jesus Christ.
In a video circulating on social media, the same security guard can be seen touching Taveras’ arm and apparently trying to prevent her from posing and waving to the crowd.
Taveras appeared to grow agitated and pushed the guard away.
After the incident, Taveras thanked fans for their “incredible support” and shared a message of solidarity with Kelly Rowland on Instagram.
“Today more than ever we need to stay together , suport eachether (sic) protect our souls , have strong boundaries and stand for our rights, let’s show some love and respect to the extraordinary @kellyrowland a pure soul , a talented, classy , educated woman of color that represents with respect all of US,” she wrote in her post.
“I’m impressed how you handled sister , I didn’t (know) that happened to you first I was very impressed how calm and genteel (sic) you wr because in my case I was tired of the abuse,” she continued. “BLACK WOMAN MATTERS- we are not going to be in silence on situations like that , we need respect ,it’s enough. I hug you queen #kellyrowland , thanks for giving us sooo much god bless your heart.”
Yoona
On May 25, a video circulated on social media of an interaction between the same security guard and Korean pop star and actor Yoona.
The video showed Yoona’s earlier appearance on the Cannes red carpet on May 19.
The moment with Yoona, 33, unfolded in a similar way to the incidents with Rowland and Taveras. The singer paused and turned to wave on the iconic Cannes stairs, at which point the same staffer raised her arm and appeared to hurry her along.
Yoona and the security guard did not appear to exchange any heated words, and Yoona did not publicly address the moment afterwards.
However, some of her fans mentioned the moment on social media when Yoona shared an Instagram photo of the pink gown she had been wearing that day.
“You looked very elegant. ☺️ Unfortunately, that security guard was rushing you out of the way, too,” one person commented.
“She totally shoved her away, forbidding her to stop 1sec. What was going on with that woman to physically harass all these ladies?” another person wrote in the comments.
Another commenter disagreed with the above comments, saying the Cannes staffer was simply "doing her job.”
Sawa Pontyjska
Video also circulated on social media of a run-in between the sameCannessecurity guard and Sawa Pontyjska, a Ukrainian model and TV presenter.
In the video, which Pontyjska shared on TikTok, the Cannes guard can be seen holding the model in a bear hug at the top of the Cannes red steps. As Pontyjska struggled to free herself, she appeared to lose her balance at one point and lowered to a crouch.
She then broke free of the staffer’s grip and began moving away from her, but was quickly stopped by other security guards.
The circ*mstances surrounding the incident, and why Pontyjska was being restrained, are unclear.
Pontyjska joked about the incident in a May 23 TikTok video, in which she filmed herself walking down a street with military officers walking nearby.
“Guys, after I was kicked out yesterday from the Cannes Film Festival, just to have a walk I decided to hire military service as my bodyguards so no other people will be able to throw me from anywhere,” she said.
Has the Cannes Film Festival addressed these red carpet incidents?The identity of the Cannes staffer involved in these incidents has not been revealed, and the Cannes Film Festival has not commented publicly on what happened.
TODAY.com reached out to Cannes for comment and has not yet heard back.
It is unclear whether the security guard’s actions were tied to the enforcement of any specific Cannes protocols.
In general, the French film festival is known for its strict rules for attendees, including banning selfies on the red carpet.
In a 2018 interview with Variety, Cannes director Thierry Frémaux called red carpet selfies “ridiculous” and said the practice “tarnishes the quality and tempo of the ascending the steps.”
Cannes is also known for its strict dress code. Attendees of gala screenings must wear a tuxedo and bow tie or an evening dress, according to the festival’s website.
“In the absence of this, you may wear a co*cktail dress, a dark trouser suit, a dressy top with black trousers, a black dress, a black or midnight blue suit with a bow tie,” the dress code continues, also noting that trainers (sneakers) are “forbidden.”
The festival had previously banned women from wearing non-high-heeled shoes on the red carpet, which led to barefoot protests from guests including Kristen Stewart and Julia Roberts.
As of 2024, the festival dress code specifically notes that footwear “with or without heels” is permitted — but either way, it must be “elegant.”
