Wes Anderson Calls Trump’s Proposed Tariffs ‘Fascinating’: ‘I Feel Like He’s Saying He’s Going to Take All the Money’

As an American writer-director who now lives and makes his films in Europe, Wes Anderson could be a target for Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on films made outside the U.S. But at a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday, Anderson mostly appeared confused by the president’s vague proclamations.

“The tariff is fascinating,” Anderson said when asked about the issue. “I’ve never heard of a 100% tariff. I feel that he’s saying he’s going to take all the money, and then what do we get?”

He grinned and shrugged. “It’s complicated to me. Can you hold up the movie in customs? I want to know the details first. And I’ll hold off on my official answer.”

Anderson made the comments at a press conference with actors Benicio del Toro, Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Cera, Mia Threapleton, Riz Ahmed, Rupert Friend and Richard Ayoade. It followed the Sunday night premiere of “The Phoenician Scheme,” his fourth movie to premiere in competition in Cannes.

At the press conference, Anderson also acknowledged that he’s seen the memes and heard the talk about how all his movies are so similar and so instantly identifiable, and he’d like to beg to differ. But he can’t.

“Someone said they watch the trailers from my movies and they could tell in five seconds it was my movie,” he said. “I can’t pretend I don’t know what they’re talking about, but for me, each movie is very different.”

Cumberbatch, who also appeared in Anderson’s Oscar-winning short “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” called the director’s set “a charmed place of invention.” But he admitted that fitting into the impeccably designed, highly mannered universe of Anderson’s films can be tricky. “It’s a constraint that’s also a Zen-like discipline, where you have to strike away everything you thought you should do with the character,” he said.

“It’s like nothing else, really,” added Riz Ahmed. “It feels quite dreamlike to me. The characters are so vivid and yet so distinctive. The situations, the plot — it all feels heightened. But also a dream because you have to pinch yourself when you look to your left and right and see who else is on the set.”

He grinned. “And you also want to steal all the props.”

Benicio Del Toro stars in the film as Zsa-zsa Korda (Del Toro), a wealthy man and frequent target of assassination attempts who comes up with a plan — the “Phoenician scheme” — to sink much of his money into a elaborate if mysterious project and make his only daughter, a novitiate nun, his heir.

“The main thing (about working with Anderson) is that that I get to channel the kid in me to really explode, and that’s unique as an actor,” he said. He also talked about the opening scene in which his character is seen from above in the bathtub as he’s being waited on by nurses while recovering from yet another attempt on his life.

“He told me, ‘It’s going to be shot in slow motion but I need you to ask really fast,'” Del Toro said. “I thought, if we’re going to act really fast and you’re going to shoot it in slow motion, isn’t that the same as doing it normally?” He laughed. “It isn’t.  Fast and slow doesn’t make real. It makes something new.”

Anderson also used the press conference to announce some new projects without revealing details. At one point, he mentioned a new screenplay, then looked into the wings and said, “Can I announce it?” A shrug. “Roman (Coppola) and Richard (Ayoade) and I are working on a script together, but I’m not going to tell you anything about it.”

When asked if he and actor Michael Cera planned to work together again after the two teamed up for the first time on “The Phoenician Scheme,” both men said they wanted to, and Anderson insisted that they shake hands on the dais to seal the promise. And later, when a journalist asked if he would like to make a sequel to any of his films, Anderson announced, “We’ll do ‘The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou 2′” and then sealed that promise with another handshake.

The ever-elusive Bill Murray, meanwhile, attended the press conference and sat in the front row reserved for guests, but did not speak. He did, however, force producer and co-writer Roman Coppola’s teenage daughter to stand up and take a bow when Anderson mentioned that it was her 14th birthday.

“The Phoenician Scheme” is Anderson’s fourth film to screen in competition in Cannes, after “Moonrise Kingdom” in 2012, “The French Dispatch” in 2021 and “Asteroid City” in 2023.

TheWrap’s William Bibbiani called the film “Anderson’s most challenging work” and described it as “a little silly, a little profound, a little lovely, a little dingy.”

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