Cannes Will Crack the Code

(andPOP) - The eagerly anticipated movie version of The Da Vinci Code will open the 59th Festival de Cannes on May 17, says the Hollywood Reporter.

That's two days before the film opens worldwide.

It will be screened out of competition at Cannes, but it's still a project of impeccable pedigree. Directed by Ron Howard, based on Dan Brown's best-selling novel, and partly shot in the Louvre Museum, the film boasts an international cast featuring Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Jean Reno, Ian McKellen and Alfred Molina.

The novel has been criticized by the Roman Catholic Church as well as scholars for having no historical basis. That didn't stop more than 30 million copies from flying off the bookshelves.

Director-producer-actor Howard first came to Cannes with his 1988 film Willow. His A Beautiful Mind won a Best Picture Oscar in 2002.