Outside Cannes, stars shine for AIDS research at amfAR Gala hosted by Geena Davis

ANTIBES, France, May 21 (Reuters) – Celebrities including Rami Malek, Eva Longoria and Lizzo gathered on the grounds of the immaculate Hotel du ‌Cap-Eden-Roc on Thursday evening for the amfAR Gala to raise money for ‌HIV/AIDS research.

Oscar winner Geena Davis returned to the event after nearly three decades to host ​this year’s gala on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival in the French Riviera village of Antibes.

In addition to Lizzo, singer-songwriters Robbie Williams and Zara Larsson provided the entertainment for the black-tie crowd in between auction rounds at the event, ‌where the least expensive supporter ⁠ticket runs to 17,500 euros ($20,336.75).

Items on the auction block included the Philip Colbert sculpture “Reclining Lobster,” a seven-day private Arctic expedition ⁠and a walk-on role in Season 6 of “Emily in Paris.”

“The world is in such a dark place, so any chance that we have to be able to ​be some ​sort of light is so important,” said ​actor and singer Sofia Carson, ‌best known as a former Disney star who has transitioned into film and producing.

The amfAR gala, first championed by screen icon Elizabeth Taylor in 1993, has to date raised more than $300 million towards research on HIV/AIDS, according to the organisers.

“It’s not over yet. We’ve made progress. It’s progress we embrace and we’re ‌very proud of. But as I like to ​say, we can see the finish line ​right now,” amfAR CEO Kyle Clifford ​told Reuters before the dinner.

Davis, whose performance in road movie “Thelma & ‌Louise” features on the film festival’s ​poster this year, ​is no stranger to philanthropy, having founded the Geena Davis Institute for equitable media representation in 2004.

The actor, known for “A League of Their Own” ​and “Beetlejuice,” will be starring ‌in Netflix series “The Boroughs,” from “Stranger Things” makers the Duffer Brothers, which ​also launches globally on Thursday.

($1 = 0.8605 euros)

(Reporting by Francesca Halliwell, Writing ​by Miranda Murray; Editing by Nia Williams)