Movie casts don’t get much starrier than Glass Onion, Netflix’s hotly anticipated Knives Out sequel which made its rousing premiere Saturday night at the Toronto International Film Festival. As the credits rolled on Rian Johnson’s latest whodunit, a murderer’s row of top talent took the stage—Oscar nominees including Kate Hudson, Edward Norton, and Leslie Odom Jr.; Grammy- nominated superstar Janelle Monáe; and of course, returning as Detective Benoit Blanc, Daniel Craig. The cheery smiles and laughs shared by the ensemble during the post-screening Q&A followed a lengthy standing ovation from the audience—and preceded a rousing afterparty, cohosted by Netflix and Vanity Fair and sponsored by Audi.
It’s an easy film to celebrate. The mood inside Myth, downtown Toronto’s trendy Greek restaurant—mirroring, of course, the film’s remote Greek island location—was downright euphoric, both for those behind Glass Onion and those who got to take the premiere in. Attendees including top industry members, press, and fest-goers of all stripes obsessively parsed the mystery-comedy’s big twists, from what they didn’t see coming (short version: a lot) to the deeper meaning of that final shot. (No spoilers here!) I caught up with Johnson as the party got going, clearly beaming from the ecstatic reaction inside the Princess of Wales Theatre—if also, true to form, still a little bit nervous about spoilers leaking from the film as we inch toward Netflix’s December release date. “It’s just so great to see the crowd react,” he told me.
With drinks and apps flowing through the space, the event also marked a big turning point for Netflix this awards season, as a bona fide crowdpleaser just crashed the race. The word out of Telluride last week was some weariness over the many darker films that dominated screenings, but Toronto is the place for a vibe shift, if you will, and Glass Onion certainly delivered. There were lots of smiles tonight based on just how well the movie played, and lots of eyes on Hudson and Monáe, particularly, as they got to mingling inside. The pair deliver especially stellar, sharp work in a cast full of delicious performances, and met applause both in the theater and at the party that followed.
The starry ensemble stuck around deep into the night, as did other notable attendees including Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos and CAA partner Bryan Lourd. Glass Onion offers a true cinematic getaway, after all—and no one was in a rush to head back home.
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