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After having had its release date moved up several months, director Baz Luhrmann鈥檚 take on F. Scott Fitzgerald classic 鈥淭he Great Gatsby鈥� will open the Cannes Film Festival in May.

鈥淭he Great Gatsby鈥� is scheduled to hit US theaters May 10, five days before it will open the festival on May 15.

鈥淚t is a great honor for all those who have worked on The Great Gatsby to open the Cannes Film Festival,鈥� Luhrmann said in a statement, according to USA Today. "We are thrilled to return to a country, place and festival that has always been so close to our hearts.鈥�

Luhrmann鈥檚 version of the classic novel stars 鈥淒jango Unchained鈥� actor Leonardo DiCaprio as the title character, 鈥淎n Education鈥� star Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, and Tobey Maguire of the 鈥淪pider-Man鈥� films as narrator Nick Carraway.

According to Reuters, DiCaprio's return to the festival in association with the film will be his first appearance there since 2007.

Films that have opened the Cannes Film Festival over the past few years are often critically acclaimed and have gone on to be nominated for Oscars, Golden Globes, and other awards. The 2012 opener, Wes Anderson鈥檚 鈥淢oonrise Kingdom,鈥� snagged a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination and a Best Musical or Comedy Golden Globe nomination. Director Woody Allen鈥檚 film 鈥淢idnight in Paris,鈥� which opened the 2011 festival, earned Best Picture and Best Director Oscar nominations and won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar as well as the Best Screenplay Golden Globe. It also snagged Best Musical or Comedy and Best Director Golden Globe nominations.

Bucking the trend was the 2010 Cannes Film Festival opener, director Ridley Scott鈥檚 take on 鈥淩obin Hood,鈥� which was critically panned. However, Pixar鈥檚 well-received animated film 鈥淯p,鈥� which was the rare animated film nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, opened the 2009 festival.