TIFF sets Rocky origin film and Chris Rock drama in 2026 lineup
The Toronto festival’s Gala and Special Presentations slate spans nearly 30 countries, with Peter Farrelly, Chris Rock, Danny Boyle and Pedro Almodóvar among the names.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
The Toronto International Film Festival has put a new Rocky story and a Chris Rock drama near the center of its 2026 Gala and Special Presentations slate.
TIFF announced Monday that its 51st edition will run Sept. 10 to 20 in downtown Toronto, with feature films from close to 30 countries across the two high-profile programs.
One of the buzziest entries is I Play Rocky, Peter Farrelly’s biographical sports drama about the making of Sylvester Stallone’s 1976 film Rocky. TIFF said Anthony Ippolito stars as Stallone, the actor and screenwriter who created the boxing classic. Farrelly previously brought Green Book to TIFF before it won the Academy Award for best picture.
Chris Rock is also bringing Misty Green to the festival. TIFF lists the film as a world premiere in its Gala Presentations program, with Rock writing, directing and starring. The cast also includes Rosalind Eleazar, Adam Driver, Daniel Kaluuya, Anna Kendrick, Topher Grace and Anthony Anderson.
Opening, closing and major names
TIFF said the opening night film will be Being Heumann, directed by Siân Heder. The festival’s closing night selection is Villeneuve: The Rise of a Legend, a Canadian sports drama from Yan Lanouette Turgeon about the early years of racer Gilles Villeneuve. TIFF said that screening is set for Sept. 19.
The announcement also adds films by a heavy-hitting group of directors, including Danny Boyle, Pedro Almodóvar, Cristian Mungiu, Mike Leigh, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi and Hirokazu Kore-eda.
Boyle’s Ink is set for a Canadian premiere in Special Presentations. Almodóvar’s Bitter Christmas will have its North American premiere, while Mungiu’s Fjord and Leigh’s Tender Loving Care are both listed as Canadian premieres.
What is in the Gala slate
The Gala Presentations program includes world premieres from several actor-filmmakers and well-known names behind the camera. Courteney Cox’s Evil Genius, Rebel Wilson’s Girl Group, Tim Blake Nelson’s The Life and Deaths of Wilson Shedd and Trudie Styler’s Up Against It are all listed as world premieres.
Other Gala titles include Anton Corbijn’s A Talent for Murder, Marc Fitoussi’s All About Corinne, Lauren Miller Rogen’s Babies, Florian Zeller’s Bunker, Wayne Wang’s Diary of a Mad Old Man, John Madden’s Onwards and Sideways, Susanna White’s Prima Facie and Jennifer Peedom’s Tenzing.
Canadian stories also feature in the Gala lineup, including Adrian Buitenhuis’ Man in Motion: The Rick Hansen Story, Sean Menard’s Run Terry Run and Villeneuve: The Rise of a Legend.
Special Presentations stretches wide
Special Presentations brings a broad international mix. TIFF listed Hamaguchi’s All of a Sudden, Kore-eda’s Look Back, Takashi Miike’s Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo, Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Minotaur and Lee Chang-dong’s Possible Love among the section’s titles.
The program also includes David and Nathan Zellner’s Alpha Gang, Gael García Bernal’s Hombre al agua, Jesse Eisenberg’s The Debut, Mina Shum’s Whatcha Want, Richie Mehta’s Phoolan and Michael Dowse’s The Stunt Driver.
TIFF said the full Gala and Special Presentations lineup includes world, international, North American and Canadian premieres, giving Toronto another packed awards-season launchpad in September.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.