Over 600 officers are mobilized to secure the 2026 Cannes Festival, with enhanced security around the Palais des Festivals, transportation, and sensitive sites. Law enforcement is also monitoring luxury watch thefts, which have increased on the French Riviera over the past several months.
The Cannes Festival began on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. Until Saturday, May 23, 2026, the event is subject to a security operation under the authority of the prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, Laurent Hottiaux. Over 600 personnel are mobilized, including 550 dedicated to security and 60 assigned to health and rescue.
State services coordinated the organization of this operation with the city of Cannes and Festival organizers for several months. Several specialized units operate on the ground to respond to terrorist threats, protest movements, and crowd movement risks.
Enhanced controls around the Palais des Festivals and in transportation
The access area to the Palais des Festivals is subject to security and bomb disposal inspections conducted by national police and civil security. The perimeter is secured by national and municipal police officers, Spanish and Italian police officers sent as reinforcements, Sentinelle operation military personnel, firefighters, emergency medical services, civil protection, as well as specialized RAID units, bomb disposal experts, canine units, and drone teams.
The operation relies on multiple security perimeters. A first perimeter surrounds the Palais des Festivals. A second aims to prevent intrusions and ram-vehicle attacks. A third concerns transportation routes with traffic flow controls.
Public transportation is also subject to enhanced surveillance throughout the Festival. Controls concern trams, buses, and trains with the support of gendarmes from the Departmental Unit for Flow Control and Railway Safety.
Observer-marksman pairs secure several high points. An order temporarily prohibits overflights of the celebration area. An air safety and anti-drone system is deployed in Cannes’ airspace.
Particular vigilance around luxury watch thefts
Controls also target everyday crime. Security forces specifically target narcotics, drug deliveries, luxury watch thefts, as well as illegal taxis and ride-sharing vehicles. Particular surveillance also concerns RTE and Enedis operator installations to prevent any sabotage.
A few hours before the Cannes Festival opening, Nice’s inter-departmental judicial police service presented its operation to combat luxury watch thefts. The inter-departmental directorate of the national police has increased resources deployed for the International Film Festival on the French Riviera. Several such incidents have been recorded in recent weeks.
According to the assessment released by the SIPJ of Nice, three luxury watch thefts have been recorded in Cannes since the beginning of 2026. Seventeen cases were recorded in 2025 and twenty-seven in 2024. Police services describe a “growing phenomenon” on the French Riviera.
The memory of the power outage during the 2025 Festival
Last year, a power outage of criminal origin affected western Alpes-Maritimes on Saturday, May 24, during preparations for the Cannes Festival closing ceremony. Cannes, Mandelieu, Antibes, Vallauris, as well as several municipalities in the Nice hinterland were affected by this massive outage.
A fire had damaged a high-voltage substation, causing an outage across a large portion of the electrical network. The gendarmerie had then considered a criminal angle. An investigation was opened to determine the exact circumstances of the incident. According to RTE and Enedis, nearly 160,000 households were left without power.
The telephone network was also disrupted in several sectors. 5G was temporarily cut off in certain areas before a gradual return to normal. Railway traffic between Nice and Cannes suffered significant delays. SNCF announced delays of 15 to 20 minutes on several lines. The Monaco Grand Prix was not affected by this incident.
Laurent Hottiaux, prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, recalls that “the very high-level security operation for the Cannes International Film Festival incorporates all dimensions – air, land, and sea – and remains in constant evolution to meet the Festival’s requirements, the world’s second most publicized event after the Olympic Games. Thank you to the security forces who will be mobilized 24/7 for 15 days.”
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