Belgium's prestigious French-language cinema awards will undergo a significant rebranding next month, abandoning the Magritte name after the René Magritte Foundation terminated its 14-year partnership with the André Delvaux Academy. The ceremony, scheduled for March 7, will now be called the "René du Cinéma" awards, a change prompted by what the foundation describes as "grave deviations" that transformed the event into a political rally. Foundation president Charly Herscovici, who holds the legal rights to the surrealist artist's name, announced the decision following last year's highly politicized ceremony. The split reflects growing tension between artistic celebration and ideological activism in European cultural institutions.
When the André Delvaux Academy first proposed an annual Belgian cinema celebration in February 2011, the Magritte Foundation enthusiastically supported the initiative and permitted use of the painter's name. At that time, the ceremony focused primarily on promoting Belgian filmmaking and celebrating francophone cinematic achievements. However, the foundation now argues that over the past three years, particularly the most recent ceremony, the event has increasingly prioritized political messaging over film appreciation. The foundation's press release explicitly states that the stage meant to honor Belgian cinema became a political meeting platform, pushing cinematic celebration into the shadows.
The 2025 ceremony, hosted by French public media journalist Charline Vanhoenacker, exemplified this shift for the foundation's leadership. Vanhoenacker, known for her political commentary, infused the event with partisan humor from the outset. She mocked Donald Trump and the far right, comparing their political programs to horror films and displaying a MAGA hat she called "the most disgusting on Earth." Her attempt at satire included renaming the awards "Magritte du Cinéma Great Again" while substituting a blue cap for the red MAGA version. Belgian media outlet Le Soir noted that she had deliberately injected political dimensions into the ceremony, while French newspaper Journal du Dimanche reported that her laborious political jabs stunned internet users.
The political content extended far beyond the host's monologue. Approximately 40 artists interrupted the ceremony for a political happening denouncing the global rise of the far right and what they termed human rights regression. Award winners used their acceptance speeches to criticize Belgium's Arizona government for allegedly inhumane migration policies, accuse Reformist Movement president Georges-Louis Bouchez of misanthropy, denounce Israeli actions in Gaza as genocide, and call for deconstructing colonial, racist, misogynistic, Islamophobic, homophobic, and transphobic narratives. When Bouchez had previously suggested eliminating the Culture Ministry, Vanhoenacker retorted, "Does Belgium really need a Culture Minister? Does Belgium really need a Georges-Louis Bouchez?"
The Magritte Foundation responded with pointed sarcasm to the academy's renaming strategy. The foundation noted that since the ceremony had become merely a shadow of itself, organizers completed the transformation by naming future awards after the painter's first name rather than his full identity. While the academy awkwardly attempted to signal continuity through the "René" designation, the foundation explicitly stated it has no association with the rebranded event. Foundation representatives suggested that if the academy wishes to recover its original purpose, it should certainly recover its common sense, which might also help win back audiences that have been steadily declining.
Audience figures for the ceremony have continuously decreased, according to media reports, suggesting that viewers may be alienated by the heavy political content. The foundation's decision represents a broader cultural backlash against what critics call the replacement of culture by ideology, or the infiltration of political agendas into artistic spaces. Belgian media outlet BFM reported that the "René" name supposedly emphasizes Belgian identity and sounds more populist. The split between the Magritte Foundation and the André Delvaux Academy highlights the ongoing debate across Europe about whether cultural institutions should remain politically neutral or serve as platforms for activism. As the March ceremony approaches, the controversy raises questions about the future of Belgian cinema celebration and the boundaries between art and politics.
