Cannes Film Festival 2021: Bella Hadid, Helen Mirren and more attend opening ceremony

The glamour was dialled up in the French Riviera on Tuesday as the annual event started with a bang

Bella Hadid, in Jean Paul Gaultier, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Jessica Chastain, in Dior, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Helen Mirren, in Dolce & Gabbana, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Jodie Foster, in Givenchy, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Simon Helberg, Marion Cotillard, in Chanel, and director Leos Carax attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Andie MacDowell attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Jury president and director Spike Lee, in Louis Vuitton, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Carla Bruni in Celine, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Candice Swanepoel, in Etro, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Jury members Maggie Gyllenhaal, in Celine, and Melanie Laurent, in Armani, attend the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Farhana Bodi attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Kat Graham attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Soko attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Meng Li attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Lou Doillon attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Elisa Sednaoui, in Alberta Ferretti, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Pedro Almodovar attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Melanie Thierry attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Nicolas Maury attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Iris Berben attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Tahar Rahim attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Director Leos Carax, Adam Driver and Russell Mael attend the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Maxime Saada and his wife Sylvie attend the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Roxane Mesquida attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Clotilde Hesme attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Patricia Gloria attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Blanca Blanco attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Agatha Maksimova attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Song Kang-ho attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Angele and Ron Mael attend the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Elsa Zylberstein attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Leila Bekhti, in Givenchy, attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

William Abadie and Caroline Scheufele attend the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Baptiste Giabiconi attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Camelia Jordana attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

Director Bong Joon-ho attends the 'Annette' screening and opening ceremony of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival on July 6, 2021 in Cannes, France.

It may have been delayed, but Cannes Film Festival made up for the wait with a star-studded opening ceremony.

The annual cinematic celebration, which began in the French Riviera on Tuesday, brought together a wealth of famous faces on the red carpet for its first night.

Kicking off proceedings with a screening of Annette, a musical featuring Marion Cotillard and Adam Driver, stars of the silver screen congregated at the Palais des Festivals for the event.

Director Spike Lee, who is making history this year as the first black man to preside over the festival's jury, made his mark in a vibrant pink suit, as he was joined by jury members including actresses Maggie Gyllenhaal and Melanie Laurent, and French-Algerian star Tahar Rahim.

Scroll through the gallery above to see all the stars at the opening ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival 2021.

Celebrities, including actress Helen Mirren, supermodel Bella Hadid, The Martian star Jessica Chastain and model and singer Carla Bruni, also walked the red carpet, donning their finest eveningwear for the occasion.

Directors Jodie Foster, Parasite's Bong Joon-ho and Pedro Almodovar were among the names to help officially open proceedings, taking to the stage at the ceremony.

The 74th Cannes Film Festival was delayed until July from its usual May dates, with the aim of being able to host in-person events once more. The 2020 event was cancelled altogether, because of the pandemic, and while the programme has made a return this year, there are some changes afoot.

The festival has introduced an advanced booking system for screenings, those attending from outside the EU must submit to regular Covid-19 testing, and mask-wearing is mandatory.

The 2021 festival, which runs until Saturday, July 17, marks the first major fully fledged film festival held since the pandemic began, and is set to welcome premieres of films including The French Dispatch, Stillwater and Mothering Sunday.