The Cannes Film Festival is gearing up for a bumper 75th anniversary edition with a lineup of big Hollywood names, buzzy newcomers, and previous Palme d’Or winners – a splashy return despite the conflict in Ukraine.

“I honestly believe this is one of the best Cannes lineups in years,” said Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter’s European bureau chief.

The festival takes place from May 17 to 28, resuming its traditional schedule after two years of pandemic disruptions. It was cancelled in 2020 and moved to July last year, when it was held under strict COVID protocols.

This year’s parties will include Tom Cruise’s “Top Gun Maverick,” which will bring the star to Cannes for the first time in three decades, as well as Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic, starring Austin Butler and Tom Hanks.

“It’s tradition to have our American friends – don’t forget that the Cannes Festival was practically co-built, co-invented by France and Hollywood in 1939 and 1946,” festival director Thierry Fremaux said at a press conference.

The festival’s Honorary Palme D’Or for lifetime achievement will be presented to actor Forest Whitaker.

“Crimes of the Future,” starring Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Stewart, and Lea Seydoux, will mark David Cronenberg’s return to horror films.

Despite China’s absence, Asia will have a strong showing, with films by Park Chan-wook and Hirokazu Kore-eda competing and “Squid Game” actor Lee Jung-jae premiering his new film “Hunt.”

“Everyone wants to come back for this moment, this re-awakening of cinema here in Cannes,” Roxborough said.

The festival begins on Tuesday with “Final Cut,” a zombie film by French filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius, who changed the title from “Z, like Z” to remove a reference to the letter that has become associated with the Ukrainian war.

The festival has barred official Russian delegations from attending, but it will screen “Tchaikovski’s Wife,” a film by exiled Russian director Kirill Serebrennikov, who has been vocal about the war.