TIFF RED CARPET: Kristen Stewart, Twi-hards and unconditional love on display at the On the Road gala

By John Semley | September 7, 2012

By John Semley | 09/07/2012

By John Semley | Photography by Erin Seaman

Who knew there were so many ways to pronounce “Kristen?” There’s “Kriiiiiiisssssssteeeeen!,” “Kriztin!!!!” and, most common at last night’s red carpet premiere for On the Road, “OhmygodKristenIloveyou!” For Kristen Stewart’s first public appearance since news broke that she stepped out on Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson, hundreds of Twi-hards appeared at the Ryerson Theatre. A young lady had two huge posters expressing her support for Stewart, one of which read “Talent, Beauty, Strength, and Courage. We Stand By You Always.” (We asked, and it turned out the girl’s mom, no less of a Stewart superfan, made it.) Much to the crowd’s pleasure, K-Stew appeared, in a three-quarter-length mesh and floral appliqué dress that looked as though it had been expertly cut from a flowered sofa (that’s a compliment). She was joined on the carpet by co-stars and real-life couple Kirsten Dunst and Garrett Hedlund. We suspect the ghost of On the Road author and American literary icon Jack Kerouac loitered somewhere in the periphery, drinking alone.