Cannes 2015: Women are turned away from a red carpet event because they were not wearing high heels

British actress Emily Blunt has led criticism of the Cannes Film Festival after it emerged women not wearing high heels were being denied entry to screenings.

The row erupted today after it was claimed several women in their 50s, some with medical conditions, were barred from entering the screening of the lesbian romance Carol starring Cate Blanchett.

After initial reports surfaced of the so-called heels policy, many others in attendance at the glamorous festival revealed they had experienced similar treatment.

After reports surfaced that women were being turned away from the festival’s famous stairs for wearing fancy flats instead of celeb-worthy stilettos, celebs weighed in on the injustice of it all.According to Screen International, Emily Blunt was asked about the red carpet rejections at a press junket for her film Sicaro (that’s her in a Peter Pilotto dress and Jimmy Choo, yes, heels) attending the event, above).

 “Everyone should wear flats to be honest. We shouldn’t be wearing high heels anyways,” Blunt reportedly said. “That’s my point of view. I just prefer wearing Converse sneakers.” 

The film’s director was said to chime in, joking that he and her costars Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin would also be wearing heels to the film’s Tuesday premiere in protest.Though several people (including Senna director Asif Kapadia) corroborated reports that even older women and women with disabilities were turned away from the Carol premiere and instructed to come back when they had bought appropriate shoes, a Cannes spokesperson told the BBC by email that there were no such restrictions in place. “Rules have not changed throughout the years (tuxedo, formal dress for gala screenings) and there is no specific mention about the height of the women’s heels as well as for men’s,” the spokesperson explained. Festival director Thierry Fremaux also Tweeted that the reports were “unfounded.”