A charity bidder at Cannes has won a journey into space sat next to Leonardo DiCaprio, writes The Hollywood Reporter. The lot, which went for €1.2m (£1m) at the annual AmFAR Cinema Against Aids gala at the Hotel du Cap, was listed in as a "once-in-a-lifetime trip to space with a mystery guest" on Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic fleet of ships. A second pair of seats sold for €1.8m (£1.5m) for the same flight, totalling €3m (£2.6m) of the total €20m (£17m) raised, a 50% increase year-on-year.

The identity of the passenger that the bidder would be sharing starry observations and possible nausea with was not revealed until after the gavel had fallen, but DiCaprio was present at the charity dinner, along with Cannes jurors Nicole Kidman and Christoph Waltz. DiCaprio has been in town promoting The Great Gatsby, which opened this year's festival last week. Whether or not his space companion is a fan of the film has not been revealed.

Weinstein joked that many in the industry would like to see him shot into space too, "but only on a one-way ticket". The 66th Cannes film festival ends on Sunday, 26 May, when the winner of the Palme D'Or will be announced.