Kevin Costner got teary-eyed as he received a massive standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday, May 19. The actor, 69, was attending the premiere of his long-awaited film Horizon: An American Saga, and it was clearly very well-received by the audience at the festival. Following the long standing ovation, Kevin gave a beautiful speech
Following the film’s premiere, the audience gave Kevin a 10-minute standing ovation, and it clearly moved the Field of Dreams star. He reportedly “dabbed away a tear” before giving a speech, according to People. Despite the emotional moment, Kevin began his speech with a short joke. “I’m sorry you had to clap that long for me to understand that I should speak,” he told the crowd.
As Kevin continued, he complimented the “good people,” who worked on the film with him. Besides starring in the western, he is also the director and a co-writer on Horizon. “Such a good moment, not just for me, but for the actors who came with me, for people who believed in me, who continued to work,” he said. “There’s no place like here.”
Toward the end of his speech, Kevin once again showed that he was incredibly grateful for the crowd’s reaction. “I’ll never forget this,” he said. “I made this. It’s not mine anymore. It’s yours. I knew that the minute this was over and that’s what it should be. I think movies aren’t about their opening weekends. They’re about their life and about how many times you’re willing to share it.”
During the speech, the Academy Award-winning actor thanked his children for attending the premiere with him, and he once again thanked the audience for their kind reaction.
Horizon: An American Saga spans a 15 year period about American expansion into the west both before and after the Civil War. Besides Kevin, it also stars Abbey Lee, Sienna Miller, and Tom Payne. The move will have a wide release in theaters on June 28.