Bomb threat at Toronto Film Festival delays premiere of Lil Nas X documentary

The premiere of Lil Nas X’s documentary, Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero, was delayed following a bomb threat at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday 9 September.

The showing of the film at Toronto’s Roy Thompson Hall was delayed for around twenty minutes as authorities verified that the threat wasn’t actually credible. The ‘Old Town Road’ singer was kept off the red carpet while the situation was under investigation.

 

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The Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications for the festival, Judy Lung, said that Toronto police had investigated the area surrounding the red carpet before the screening.

“Our standard security measures remained in place during this time and the screening commenced with a slight delay,” Lung said in a statement. “To our knowledge, this was a general threat and not directed at the film or the artist.”

Long Live Montero, directed by Carlos López Estrada and Zac Manuel, documents Lil Nas X’s eight-month tour which began in September 2022.

The movie also shows the pop/hip-hop superstar “navigating identity, family, expectations and acceptance, all while reflecting on his place within the legacy of Black, queer performers”- according to a press release.

We love you too, @LilNasX. #TIFF23 pic.twitter.com/jUjmo2s6yK

— TIFF (@TIFF_NET) September 10, 2023