Toronto film fest unveils packed lineup despite strikes

TORONTO

The Toronto International Film Festival, North America's largest, on Monday unveiled an A-list lineup of world premieres amid the Hollywood strikes, including movies starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Seth Rogen.

The festival, which has been a launchpad for numerous Oscar-winning movies, is moving ahead with plans for its Sept. 7-17 event in the face of doubts over whether the big names will come to promote their work.

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) is on strike in a battle with studios over pay and other work conditions, meaning that its members generally cannot promote films produced by studios and streamers involved in the dispute.

But SAG-AFTRA negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland told Hollywood news outlet Deadline that actors could benefit from some kind of "interim agreement" to head to Toronto in support of independent features.

On the list of world premieres slated for TIFF are several expected award contenders including "Dumb Money," starring Rogen and Paul Dano, about the amateur investors who turned GameStop into a Wall Street phenomenon in 2021.

De Niro stars in actor Tony Goldwyn's "Ezra," about a man (Bobby Cannavale) who moves back in with his father (De Niro) after blowing up his career and marriage.

Other world premieres include Taika Waititi's sports comedy "Next Goal Wins," French filmmaker Ladj Ly's drama "Les Indesirables," Atom Egoyan's "Seven Veils" starring Amanda Seyfried and Michael Keaton's "Knox Goes Away," starring Pacino.

Also on tap is the international premiere of awards hopeful "The Holdovers" from director Alexander Payne (‘Sideways’) about a teacher (Paul Giamatti) tasked with supervising students at a boarding school who cannot go home for Christmas break.

TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey said in a statement that the lineup showcased a "rich tapestry of talent, vision, and storytelling."

The Toronto film fest is a key part of the fall festival lineup, along with Venice and Telluride, at which movies hoping to build early Oscars momentum typically hold lavish premieres.

TIFF's annual People's Choice Award has become an increasingly accurate Oscars bellwether, predicting eventual best picture winners such as "Nomadland," which took home the Academy Award in 2021, and "Green Book."

The event only returned to full strength in 2022, after two years of online or hybrid events staged amid the coronavirus pandemic.