"I am deeply honored to be here tonight. Above all, I want to thank one of the people I appreciate the most, Andrew Dominik," said the Cuban actress, addressing the director of the film.

"With Blonde you gave me the most beautiful gift", she added, hardly containing her tears, dressed in a white dress and her hair tied, in front of the approximately 1,500 festival-goers present in the large hall of the Center Deauville International (CID).

During the awarding of the prize, Arnaud Desplechin, president of the jury, praised the ability of the 34-year-old actress to "embrace" very different roles.

"I would like you to feel in this room the love of the French public," he said.

Initiated in 2011, the New Hollywood Prize rewards "the talent, passion and commitment of actors and actresses on the path to creation", a distinction that has already been awarded to Ryan Gosling (2011), Jessica Chastain (2011) or Daniel Radcliffe (2016).

"Blonde", the biopic out of competition on Marilyn Monroe, produced by Netflix and which lasts 2:45, was screened for the first time in France on Friday in Deauville and should be released on September 28 on the platform, said the organizers of the festival.

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Previously, many festival-goers along the red carpet had asked for an autograph from the Cuban actress who has already caused a stir this week at the Venice Film Festival.

Friday morning, the last of the 13 films in competition had been presented, "Emily the criminal" retracing the journey of a woman sinking into crime.

John Patton Ford's first film in Los Angeles tells the story of a young woman caught up in odd jobs and debts who decides to join a group of credit card scammers.

The main actress Aubrey Plaza, known in the United States above all as a humorist, embodies a woman who is gradually caught up in a spiral.

The winners of the 48th edition of the American festival of Deauville, organized from September 2 to 11, must be unveiled on Saturday evening.

The Grand Prix of the festival was awarded last year to "Down with the King" by Diego Ongaro.

© 2022 AFP