TIFF48: World Premieres of ‘Pain Hustlers,’ ‘Lee,’ ‘Dumb Money,’ ‘The Burial’ and More Announced

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The Toronto International Film Festival has announced the first wave of films 48th edition with 60 official selections in the Gala and Special Presentations program for this year’s Festival, with world premieres of Craig Gillespie’s GameStop stock tip true story Dumb Money, starring Paul Dano, Shailene Woodley, Pete Davidson, Vincent D’Onofrio, America Ferrera, Nick Offerman, Anthony Ramos, Sebastian Stan, and Seth Rogen, and Lee, a biopic of starring Academy Award winner Kate Winslet as photographer Elizabeth ‘Lee’ Miller, the fashion model who became an acclaimed war correspondent for Vogue magazine during World War II, the narrative feature debut from documentary filmmaker Ellen Kuras. The film also stars Emmy Award winners Andy Samberg, Alexander Skarsgård and Josh O’Connor, Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard and Academy Award nominee Andrea Riseborough. They’ll also have The Burial, the new film from Maggie Betts (and her first since 2017’s Novitiate) starring Academy Award winners Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones, with Bill Camp, Jurnee Smollett, and Alan Ruck. and David Yates’ Pain Hustlers, starring Chris Evans, Emily Blunt and Andy Garcia. The 48th Toronto International Film Festival runs September 7-17.

These new selections join the previously announced world premieres of Next Goal Wins from Academy Award winner Taika Waititi, Canada’s own Atom Egoyan with his new film Seven Veils starring Emmy Award winner Amanda Seyfried and Ladj Ly’s Les Indésirables among the films representing 70 countries comprised of 37 World Premieres, 7 International Premieres, 12 North American Premieres, and 4 Canadian Premieres.

Other notable world premieres, some of which have yet to secure a distributor and often do here in the sales market, include Wicked Little Liars from Thea Sharrock and starring Academy Award winner Olivia Colman, The Convert from Lee Tamahori starring Emmy Award winner Guy Pearce, American Fiction from Emmy Award-winning television writer Cord Jefferson (Watchmen, Succession, The Good Place) and Mahalia Belo’s The End We Start From starring Tony and Emmy Award winner Jodie Comer, Oscar nominee and Emmy Award winner Benedict Cumberbatch and Katherine Waterston.

“This year’s Galas & Special Presentations showcase a rich tapestry of talent, vision, and storytelling,” said Cameron Bailey, CEO, TIFF. “From thought-provoking narratives to breathtaking visuals and stories so unreal they have to be real, each work embodies the power of cinema to inspire, challenge, and move audiences. Get ready to experience an unforgettable celebration of film and a memorable and star-studded festival, showcasing the best of global cinema for film lovers in September.”

If you’re an intrepid follower of the festival season, you know that premiere status gives us a lot of information about not just what we’ll be seeing at festivals but where. Whether it’s a World Premiere, International Premiere (premiered in home country first), North American Premiere or Canadian Premiere, today’s lineup gives us a clue to what will hit Venice and/or Telluride first. Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s NYAD (starring Annette Bening) and George C. Wolfe’s Rustin (starring Colman Domingo), both from Netflix, show up as International Premieres at TIFF, so they’ll be hitting the mountains of Colorado first and will join Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers and Ethan Hawke’s Wildcat there. North American premieres that are hitting Venice first include Michel Franco’s Memory starring Academy Award winner Jessica Chastain, Bertrand Bonello’s The Beast starring Léa Seydoux and George MacKay, and Um Tae-Hwa’s Concrete Utopia starring Lee Byung-hun and Park Seo-joon. Richard Linklater’s newest, Hit Man, co-written by and co-starring Glen Powell is also noted as a North American premiere so no Telluride and a Venice bow will be in order. The Venice lineup announces tomorrow.

Also setting themselves up for Telluride appearances, Cannes Palme d’Or winner Anatomy of a Fall from Justine Triet and Jonathan Glazer’s Grand Prize winner The Zone of Interest (both starring Sandra Hüller) will be there as Canadian Premieres, as will be Kitty Green, who follows up 2019’s The Assistant with The Royal Hotel, which reunites her with Julia Garner.

Speaking of Hawke, a major theme for this edition is going to be actor/director films, where TIFF48 will feature films helmed by Chris Pine, Tony Goldwyn, Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Scott Thomas, Anna Kendrick, and Michael Keaton. If you’ve been following along with the SAG-AFTRA actors’ strike that went into effect on July 14, you know that while the strike is in place actors are not allowed to promote their work in any form, much less show up to a glitzy red carpet festival premiere, tribute or star-studded Q&A. But as directors, these actors can hit TIFF in support of their films in that capacity.

But, we still have six weeks before the start of TIFF (five for Venice and Telluride) and a deal could be struck in that time to open the gates for actor appearances. In the meantime, TIFF has committed to SAG-AFTRA protocols regarding the participation of its members at the festival.

Here is the first wave of films set for the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival with the full schedule on August 15 and more announcements to come.

GALA PRESENTATIONS 2023 

*Previously announced 

Concrete Utopia Um Tae-Hwa | South Korea – North American Premiere
Sales Title – North America Rights Available 

Dumb Money Craig Gillespie | USA – World Premiere 

The End We Start From Mahalia Belo | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

Fair Play Chloe Domont | USA – International Premiere 

Flora and Son John Carney | Ireland/USA – Canadian Premiere 

Hate to Love: Nickelback Leigh Brooks | Canada – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Lee Ellen Kuras | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

The Movie Emperor Ning Hao | China – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available

The New Boy Warwick Thornton | Australia – North American Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

*Next Goal Wins Taika Waititi | USA – World Premiere 

NYAD Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin | USA – International Premiere 

Punjab ’95 Honey Trehan | India – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

The Royal Hotel Kitty Green | Australia/United Kingdom – Canadian Premiere 

Solo Sophie Dupuis | Canada – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS 2023 

*Previously announced 

A Difficult Year Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache | France – International Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available  

American Fiction Cord Jefferson | USA – World Premiere 

Anatomy of a Fall Justine Triet | France – Canadian Premiere 

The Beast Bertrand Bonello | France/Canada – North American Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

The Burial Maggie Betts | USA – World Premiere 

Close to You Dominic Savage | Canada/United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

The Convert Lee Tamahori | Australia/New Zealand – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

The Critic Anand Tucker | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – Some Rights Available 

Days of Happiness Chloé Robichaud | Canada – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

The Dead Don’t Hurt Viggo Mortensen | Mexico/Canada/Denmark – World Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

El Rapto Daniela Goggi | Argentina – North American Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

Ezra Tony Goldwyn | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Fingernails Christos Nikou | USA – International Premiere 

Four Daughters Kaouther Ben Hania | France/Tunisia/Germany/Saudi Arabia – North American Premiere
Sales Title – Some Rights Available 

His Three Daughters Azazel Jacobs | USA World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Hit Man Richard Linklater | USA – North American Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

The Holdovers Alexander Payne | USA – International Premiere 

In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon Alex Gibney | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Kidnapped Marco Bellocchio | Italy/France/Germany – North American Premiere 

Knox Goes Away Michael Keaton | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

La Chimera Alice Rohrwacher | Italy/France/Switzerland – North American Premiere 

Last Summer Catherine Breillat | France – North American Premiere 

*Les Indésirables Ladj Ly | France – World Premiere
Sales Title – North America Rights Available 

Memory Michel Franco | USA/Mexico – North American Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Monster Kore-eda Hirokazu | Japan – North American Premiere 

Mother Couch Niclas Larsson | USA – World Premiere 

A Normal Family Hur Jin-ho | South Korea – World Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available

North Star Kristin Scott Thomas | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

One Life James Hawes | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Pain Hustlers David Yates | USA – World Premiere 

The Peasants DK Welchman, Hugh Welchman | Poland/Serbia/Lithuania – World Premiere
Sales Title – Some Rights Available

Poolman Chris Pine | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – Some Rights Available 

Reptile Grant Singer | USA – World Premiere 

Rustin George C. Wolfe | USA – International Premiere 

*Seven Veils Atom Egoyan | Canada – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

Shoshana Michael Winterbottom | United Kingdom/Italy World – Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

Sing Sing Greg Kwedar | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

Smugglers Ryoo Seung-wan | South Korea – North American Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Swan Song Chelsea McMullan | Canada – World Premiere
Sales Title – Some Rights Available  

Together 99 Lukas Moodysson | Sweden/Denmark – World Premiere 

Unicorns Sally El Hosaini, James Krishna Floyd | United Kingdom/USA/Sweden – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Uproar Paul Middleditch, Hamish Bennett | New Zealand – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Wicked Little Letters Thea Sharrock | United Kingdom – World Premiere
Sales Title – International Rights Available 

Wildcat Ethan Hawke | USA – International Premiere
Sales Title – North American Rights Available 

Woman of the Hour Anna Kendrick | USA – World Premiere
Sales Title – US Rights Available 

The Zone of Interest Jonathan Glazer | United Kingdom/Poland/USA – Canadian Premiere