Cannes Lions awards Apple's Eddy Cue Apfelpatient

At the Cannes Film Festival, Apple's creative industry named Eddy Cue "Entertainment Person of the Year 2026." The award recognizes less the manager than the entertainment empire he has built – from award-winning series to the most successful sports film of all time.

At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes, France, Eddy Cue, Apple's Senior Vice President for Services and Health, has been named "Entertainment Person of the Year 2026." The award honors the central role that entertainment plays in the marketing and communications world, and with it the creativity behind content that is truly worth watching. The backdrop to the honor is a record year for the streaming service Apple TV, whose current programming ranges from "Severance" to "Ted Lasso" and has made Apple a fixture in Hollywood within just a few years.

The award in Cannes

The award ceremony took place on the evening of June 21. Cue accepted the prize from Cannes Lions CEO Simon Cook, and Cannes Lions Chairman Phil Thomas also attended. In his acceptance speech, Cue emphasized the streaming service's mission: Apple never aspired to be the biggest, but the best – and at its launch just over six years ago, it set the goal of providing the world's best storytellers with a platform for their finest work.

He added that stories can evoke emotions and connect people across language and cultural boundaries – that is exactly what Apple is all about, and they are only at the beginning.

From newcomer to most awarded provider

Apple TV launched just over six years ago as a platform solely for original content and is now one of the most awarded and influential services in the industry. For five consecutive years, it has held the top spot for the best-rated original programming among all streaming services.

This reputation is built on titles like "The Studio," "Pluribus," "Severance," and "Ted Lasso." "The Studio" recently became the most awarded debut comedy series of all time, while "Severance" was the most Emmy-winning drama series last year. In film, the Oscar-winning blockbuster "F1" from Apple Original Films broke records and is the highest-grossing sports film of all time. Overall, Apple's involvement in entertainment has garnered more than 840 awards and over 3,600 nominations. Most recently, TIME magazine ranked Apple among the most influential entertainment companies in the world.

More than streaming: Cues' area of responsibility

Over the years, Cue has been instrumental in building Apple's entertainment ecosystem. His responsibilities include Apple TV, Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, Apple Books, Apple Pay, Apple News, Apple Fitness+, Apple Card, Apple Maps, and iCloud, as well as the company's productivity and creativity apps.

Apple Music recently reached record highs in listenership and new subscribers. Added to this is Apple's growing sports business: the exclusive US broadcast partnership with Formula 1, agreements with Major League Soccer (whose games Apple has integrated into the Apple TV subscription at no extra cost), and Friday Night Baseball. The Apple TV streaming service is now available in over 100 countries and on more than one billion screens.

The Bruckheimer performance and an outlook

Earlier in the day, Cue was on stage at the Grand Théâtre Lumière alongside producer Jerry Bruckheimer. In a keynote seminar, they both discussed the collaboration between Apple and Bruckheimer, including the record-breaking and Oscar-winning "F1". They also addressed an upcoming film about unidentified flying objects, which will reunite Bruckheimer with director Joseph Kosinski.

The award in Cannes is therefore less of a final milestone than an interim assessment: It marks how far Apple has taken its entertainment division in just a few years – and suggests that the pace of content and partnerships is likely to increase rather than decrease. (Image: Apple)