A seven-minute standing ovation at the premiere of his new film Jeanne du Barry at Cannes Film Festival 2023 left Johnny Depp teary-eyed on Tuesday night.

The 59-year-old actor plays King Louis XV in the French biographical film directed by Maiwenn.

Depp made his first public appearance at the 76th edition of the prestigious film festival after his 2022 legal battle with ex-girlfriend Amber Heard. He was seen holding back tears as the crowd erupted in applause for his performance in the film.

The warm reception also made Maiween, who also stars in the lead role opposite Depp in Jeanne du Barry, break out in tears. “I want to share this moment with my lover, with my producer, with Le Pacte. It was a production that was difficult to finance … and I want to share this moment with all my team across the theatre,” she said after the premiere of the film.

Jeanne du Barry marks Depp’s most high-profile acting stint since his court battle with Amber Heard. Despite the jury siding with the actor, Depp remains on the sidelines of Hollywood as a result of abuse allegations that surfaced during the trial.

Jeanne du Barry centres around the life of Jeanne Bécu (Maiwenn), a working class woman in 18th-century France who rises in social ranks through the Court of Louis XV to become his last official mistress. The film also stars Benjamin Lavernhe, Pierre Richard, Melvil Poupaud and Pascal Greggory.

The film had raked up controversy surrounding the cast ahead of its premiere at the film festival.

“I don’t know about the image of Johnny Depp in the US. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned, we wouldn’t be here talking about it,” Cannes festival director Thierry Fremaux said on the opening night of the festival.

“This [controversy] came up once the film was announced at Cannes because everybody knew Johnny had made a film in France…I don’t know why she chose him but it’s a question you should ask Maiwenn,” Fremaux stated.