Star spotting at TIFF 2026

 

Everyone asks me every year which celebrities are coming to the festival or which celebrities I have seen.

I see a lot each year, volunteering or seeing Q&As at films.  TIFF publishes a list of their attending guests.  I condensed it to a list of more well-known global celebrities.

This is only a partial list of the 800 guests coming to this year's Toronto International Film Festival

I have organized this list in alphabetical order.  So, for a challenge lets see how many you spot over the 11 days of the festival.

I know for sure I will be seeing Sir Gary Oldman at his Visionaries talk.

Celebrities attending TIFF 2026

1. Alex Lifeson 
2. Amanda Seyfried
3. Andrew Scott
4. Anna Kendrick
5. Annie Murphy
6. Ayo Edebiri
7. Carrie-Anne Moss
8. Channing Tatum
9. Chase Infiniti,
10. Chris Rock
11. Chrissie Hynde
12. Courteney Cox
13. Cynthia Erivo
14. Daniel Kaluuya 
15. Dianne Wiest
16. Diego Luna
17. Forest Whitaker 
18. Gael García Bernal
19. Geddy Lee
20. Helen Mirren
21. Hudson Williams
22. Issa Rae
23. J. K. Simmons
24. James McAvoy
25. Javier Bardem
26. Jennifer Coolidge
27. Jesse Eisenberg
28. John Malkovich
29. John Turturro
30. Josh Hartnett
31. Julianne Moore
32. Kate Mara
33. Kenneth Branagh 
34. Lalisa Manobal (Lisa)
35. Laura Linney
36. Liam Neeson
37. Lily James
38. Lily-Rose Depp
39. Luke Evans
40. Mahershala Ali
41. Margaret Qualley
42. Martin Freeman
43. Michael Imperioli
44. Michelle Yeoh
45. Naomi Watts
46. Patrick Schwarzenegger
47. Paul Giamatti
48. Penélope Cruz 
49. Rami Malek
50. Randall Park
51. Rebel Wilson
52. Rhys Ifans
53. Riley Keough
54. Rooney Mara
55. Sebastian Stan
56. Seth Rogen 
57. Sir Gary Oldman 
58. Taraji P. Henson
59. Taron Egerton
60. Tom Hiddleston
61. Willem Dafoe
62. Zooey Deschanel

Dear You-generations of a secret life

  

DEAR YOU 

Release date: Friday, September 4. 

2026 | 118 minutes | China | Teochew, Mandarin Chinese, and Thai w/ English Subtitles | Color | PG-13

A film by Lan Hongchun

 

Starring

Li Sitong, Wang Yantong, Wu Shaoqing, Zheng Runqi, Wang Xiaohui

Special Apperance

Zhao Shuguang, Li Deru, Li Shuhao,  
Seamkhum Usha

ABOUT DIRECTOR LAN HONGCHUN Lan Hongchun was born in Shantou, Guangdong Province. He is a Chinese film director, screenwriter, and editing supervisor.  In 2026, DEAR YOU was released. The film achieved an impressive 9.3 rating from 890,000 users on Douban, and its box office gross exceeded 1.9 billion RMB.

• Made without established stars, DEAR YOU became an unexpected theatrical success in China, earning nearly $300 million. 

DEAR YOU follows a family forced to confront a long‑buried secret shaped by generations of migration. Stretching across time and continents, the film transforms letters, memory, and distance into an intimate portrait of the people who hold a family together even when home has been fractured by borders—and the past refuses to stay silent.

A debt‑strapped grandson travels to Thailand in search of the grandfather he believes abandoned their family, hoping the man behind years of qiaopi letters and remittances can help him out of his financial crisis. Instead, he uncovers a lifetime of sacrifice and devotion—an act of love that became a family secret for decades.

Deep healing finally begins when his grandmother returns to Thailand to face the woman she once believed had lived the life meant for her. What starts as a mystery to uncover becomes a moment of unexpected connection—two women bound by the same history, the same sacrifice, and the same longing for a home they both lost in different ways.

Rooted in Chinese traditions, DEAR YOU strikes a deep emotional chord with families who connect to the sacrifices of migration, fractured families, and devotion across impossible distances, building to a powerful revelation—showing how love can survive borders, silence, and time itself.

This film is beautifully filmed, and the story is interesting and based on true-life stories.  The acting of this unknown cast is impeccable. This film draws you into a world you will never know.

Trailer Link:

Dear You