The biggest celebrities coming to Toronto for TIFF 2025
Let the September stargazing begin
Late August in Toronto—a time when the nights get cooler, the CNE gets pricier and the list of celebrities coming to TIFF really starts to solidify. Here, a rundown of who’s coming, from the lightning rod of the moment to that dude from the Rogers commercials.
Sydney Sweeney She’s probably the most controversial celebrity on the planet right now after a couple of polarizing off-screen dramas (the jeans/genes ad, the soap made with her bath water). Sweeney will attend the red carpet premiere of her movie Christy, a biopic about the 1990s boxing legend. And while nobody can agree about whether Sweeney is a “Republican plant” or just a plain old Republican, the buzz surrounding her Oscar-worthy performance is more consistent.
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Ryan Reynolds The beloved Canadian actor, producer and comedy hero is coming to Toronto to support the documentary he made about his own Canadian comedy hero, John Candy: I Like Me, which is the opening-night selection for TIFF’s 50th-year festivities. The only thing that could up the CanCon here would be a branded Tim Hortons breakfast box. Oh, wait.
Angelina Jolie Back in 2011, Jolie came to TIFF with then-partner Brad Pitt, and the fandemonium was so outrageous that the crowd chasing down their limo registered on the Richter scale. (One woman threw an actual human baby at the couple’s limo in the hopes of getting their attention.) But Brangelina is no more, and the hysteria around Jolie has died down—a little. She’s still one of this year’s biggest draws with her movie Couture, about the Paris fashion industry. Rumour has it she’s keen to make a move out of the US. Perhaps a little house hunting between screenings?
Charli XCX Last week, the pop star who birthed a generational mantra announced the official end of Brat Summer. Make way for Erupcja Fall. True, the title of the new film she stars in doesn’t quite roll off the tongue. But the movie itself—“A charming postcard of sapphic synchronicity,” according to TIFF programmers—probably does.
Related: A documentary about sushi master Masaki Saito will premiere at TIFF
Scarlett Johansson Johansson attended her first-ever TIFF back in 1998 as the up-and-comer in Robert Redford’s The Horse Whisperer. Now she’s at the helm with her directorial debut that’s giving Lost in Translation vibes. Eleanor the Great stars 95-year-old June Squib as the title character, who strikes up an unlikely friendship with a 19-year-old.
Idris Elba The TIFF Tribute Awards just announced everyone’s favourite brooding Brit as this year’s recipient for the Impact Media honour. Last year, Angelina Jolie took the same prize, which celebrates humanitarian contributions outside of Hollywood. Elba is being recognized for his work advancing youth equity through his foundation. Of course, the real win here would be an impromptu DJ set.
Related: Untold stories from TIFF’s first 50 years
Dwayne Johnson A former WWE star playing a former MMA fighter in a heart-wrenching biopic: sounds like the Rock is cooking up an Oscar bid with his performance in The Smashing Machine. The movie will premiere at TIFF, and Johnson will also be appearing at TIFF’s In Conversation With series—a clear sign that the transition from wrestler to thespian is complete.
Keanu Reeves Dude! Turns out the guy from the Rogers commercials is a pretty decent actor. He stars in Aziz Ansari’s In Good Fortune, which is getting its world premiere at TIFF. Reeves is playing an angel alongside fellow Northern stars Seth Rogen and Sandra Oh.
Jacob Elordi
He’s still missing from the Frankenstein trailer, but the Australian actor will be at TIFF. It’s familiar territory after he lived here during the Toronto-based shoot of Guillermo del Toro’s monster movie. Maybe he’ll pop over to Nutbar between screenings?
Paul Mescal The Irish actor has turned the formerly scorned mullet into the only male hairstyle that matters. He’s rocking the look in Hamnet—director Chloé Zhao’s historical fantasy about the son of William Shakespeare, which is screening at TIFF.
Courtney Shea is a freelance journalist in Toronto. She started her career as an intern at Toronto Life and continues to contribute frequently to the publication, including her 2022 National Magazine Award–winning feature, “The Death Cheaters,” her regular Q&As and her recent investigation into whether Taylor Swift hung out at a Toronto dive bar (she did not). Courtney was a producer and writer on the 2022 documentary The Talented Mr. Rosenberg, based on her 2014 Toronto Life magazine feature “The Yorkville Swindler.”
