Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment in association with Bulgari will premiere a restored version of the larger-than-life production in the Cannes Classics programme on May 21.

Jessica Chastain will host the event and guests will include Richard Burton’s daughter Kate Burton and Elizabeth Taylor’s son Chris Wilding as well as other representatives from the film and families.

Joseph L Mankiewicz’s controversial epic starred Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton and made headlines when the budget on the three-year production ballooned to $42m – which equates to $300m today – and sparked the torrid affair between the two leads.

Bulgari will display several pieces from Taylor’s personal jewellry collection at a reception after the screening and will unveil an exclusive piece at an auction for The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has made a donation to the Foundation.