Cannes, France— The clapping continued as a camera projected Kevin Costner's face onto the Grand Théâtre Lumière's massive screen while he wiped away tears.
On Sunday, he screened the first chapter of his four-chapter Western, “Horizon: An American Saga,” in Cannes.
After his 1990 directorial debut in “Dances with Wolves,” and his five-season run as “Yellowstone’s rancher-patriarch,” it's the climax of his fixation with American frontier life.
His latest endeavor is notoriously hard to fund. He mortgaged his seaside Santa Barbara home to pay its $100 million+ budget.
He was joined at the premiere by five of his seven children, who had part of their inheritance invested in the film.
The film also stars his 15-year-old son Hayes.
“I’m sorry that you had to clap that long for me to understand that I should speak,” Costner remarked, taking a microphone nine minutes into a standing ovation that began with the first credit.
He said, “I'll never forget this, neither will my children... "Movies are about life and how many times you share them," not opening weekends. He reiterated his luck.