Kristen Stewart Had Words for Cannes Folks Who Walked Out of Her Movie

Crimes of the Future, the new film from David Cronenberg, has already prompted bold reactions from audiences at Cannes, including reports of people walking out of the theater mid-movie in reaction to some of the content. But Kristen Stewart thinks they’re missing the point.

The film takes place in the future, in a world where people no longer feel pain, and follows two performance artists who “have an artistic practice involving the growth and removal of new organs onstage before a live audience.”

It’s clear from the trailer that it harkens back to traditional Cronenberg days of body horror, possibly taken to a new level with the advancements made in film technology since the director first shocked audiences with the likes of Videodrome and The Fly in the ‘80s.

And it was already reported that during the very first screening of Crimes of the Future, some viewers only made it a few minutes in before heading for the door, primarily thanks to an early scene of violence.

But the film still received a six minute standing ovation, minus those who couldn’t stomach the full viewing. And Stewart recently spoke with Vulture about that reception.

“Before the credits lifted, it was dead silent,” she recalled. “I was like ‘Ooh, people don’t know how to feel. They don’t know if they should clap or not.’”

Despite the mixed reactions, as well as the perception that this film is more than a little bit messed up, the actress also insisted that there’s something “simply sweet” about it.

“Yes, we’re barreling towards certain death, for sure. But there’s a delicacy to the movie that, even in the gory stuff, I was really bewitched by it,” she said. “Everyone talking about walking about and how intense it was. I was like, ‘It’s not intense! It’s really beautiful.’”

“A huge mission statement of the movie is that art triumphs. It saves. It’s something that doesn’t die because we’ve left it behind,” she added.

Crimes of the Future is already screening at select theaters, and will have its wide release on June 10.