Toronto International Film Festival Sets Lineup with Films by Chris Rock, Peter Farrelly

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has unveiled the majority of its lineup for its 51st edition, set to run from September 10-20. The festival will host world premieres for notable films, including Chris Rock's drama "Misty Green" and Peter Farrelly's "I Play Rocky," a film centered on the making of the iconic "Rocky" movie and starring Sylvester Stallone.

TIFF, recognized as North America's largest film festival, revealed over 60 films slated for its gala and special presentations sections. Among these are Courteney Cox's directorial debut, the true-crime drama "Evil Genius," and Jesse Eisenberg's "The Debut," his follow-up to "A Real Pain."

This year's festival follows closely on the heels of the Venice and Telluride film festivals. The categorization of premieres at TIFF often provides clues about where films may have debuted earlier. For instance, "The Debut" is listed as an international premiere at Toronto, suggesting a prior screening at Venice. Similarly, Lee Chang-dong's "Possible Love" and Andrew Haigh's "A Long Winter" are designated as Canadian premieres, hinting at potential Telluride debuts.

Many acclaimed films from the Cannes Film Festival in May are also heading to Toronto, including "Club Kid," "La Bola Negra," "Minotaur," "Clarissa," "All of a Sudden," and the Palme d'Or winner "Fjord." In recent years, TIFF has increasingly served as a significant market for films seeking distribution, with past successes like "Obsession" finding buyers and achieving box-office hits after their festival runs. The festival's opening film will be "Being Heumann," directed by Siân Heder, focusing on the life of disability rights activist Judith Heumann.