David Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future Premiere Sparks Walkouts at Cannes

Crimes of the Future is already causing a stir as audience members walk out of the film’s premiere.

At several points during its debut screening at the Cannes Film Festival, scenes of violent, gory body horror proved too much for some viewers. Notably, the majority of walkouts took place within the first five minutes, with others exiting during a particularly grotesque scene involving Léa Seydoux and an open wound.

The star-studded gala event took place on the evening of Monday, May 23 with director David Cronenberg and the film’s cast, including Viggo Mortensen and Kristen Stewart, in attendance. But the walkouts were not exactly unexpected.

“There are some very strong scenes,” Cronenberg explained. “I mean, I’m sure we will have walkouts within the first five minutes of the movie. I’m sure of that. Some people who have seen the film have said that they think the last 20 minutes will be very hard on people, and that there’ll be a lot of walkouts. Some guy said he almost had a panic attack. ”

Crimes of the future stars Viggo Mortensen and Kristen Stewart in the highly anticipated return to sci-fi horror for the 79-year-old filmmaker.

Here’s the official synopsis:

“As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. Accompanied by his partner, celebrity performance artist Saul Tenser showcases the metamorphosis of his organs. Meanwhile, a mysterious group is trying to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution. ”

Meanwhile, the mysterious group mentioned above is being tracked by Timlin (Kristen Stewart) – an investigator from the National Organ Registry. The group wishes to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution… whatever that means.

Crimes of the Future’s first trailer gave us a glimpse of what to expect… but it looks as though Cronenberg’s signature body horror just proved too much for some.

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