The Toronto International Film Festival made its first programming announcement for the festival's 2025 edition on Wednesday.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
The Toronto International Film Festival will open its 50th edition this September with the world premiere of a new documentary about Canadian comedy legend John Candy.
Directed by Colin Hanks and produced by Canadian Ryan Reynolds, the doc John Candy: I Like Me will screen Sept. 4 at Roy Thomson Hall, organizers revealed Wednesday in the first programming announcement for TIFF’s 2025 edition.
While Hanks was just 17 years old when Candy died of a heart attack in 1994 at the age of 43, his father Tom enjoyed a long history of working with the actor, starting with the pair’s 1984 comedy Splash and 1985’s cult classic Volunteers (which also featured Colin’s stepmother, Rita Wilson).
John Candy: I Like Me is a heartfelt tribute to the legendary Canadian icon, with stories and memories from his family, closest friends and longtime collaborators.Supplied
Candy’s career, which was launched in Toronto through Second City Television’s legendary 1976-1984 run, was a bright light of big-screen comedy for much of the ’80s and early ’90s, including his work in The Great Outdoors; Planes, Trains and Automobiles; Uncle Buck; Cool Runnings and Home Alone.
“Comedy fans all over the world grew up on John Candy’s humour,” Cameron Bailey, TIFF’s chief executive, said in a statement. “Colin has made a hugely entertaining film packed with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, but like John, this movie is all heart. For us, it’s the perfect way to kick off TIFF’s 50th edition.”
The doc, which will stream on Prime Video after its TIFF premiere, is just one of two Candy-centric projects debuting this fall. In October, Canadian author Paul Myers, brother of actor Mike Myers, will release the comedian’s new biography John Candy: A Life in Comedy with House of Anansi Press.
The decision to select the Candy doc as TIFF’s opening-night film marks the first time that a film about Canadian subject matter has kicked off the festival since 2019, when director Daniel Roher’s Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band, was programmed. (Although Hanks’ movie is not technically Canadian, given it was funded by Amazon MGM Studios.)
This year’s edition of TIFF will run Sept. 4 through 14, with more programming to be announced throughout the summer.