A year after twin Hollywood strikes robbed the Toronto International Film Festival of much of its red carpet glamour, the brightest stars have returned to Canada’s biggest city — and brought their fashion A-game.
From full-length gowns to chic pantsuits, the best in film and music attracted crowds of fans who flooded the streets of Toronto’s entertainment district in the hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite celebs.
Here is a look at some of the best outfits seen at TIFF:
Sexy and she knows it
Jennifer Lopez is truly in a category all by herself, and the smoldering silver metallic Tamara Ralph gown she wore in Toronto — held together only with black ribbons, baring the entire length of her body — proved it.
The 55-year-old Lopez, who recently filed for divorce from husband Ben Affleck, a producer of her new film “Unstoppable,” completed the look with sky-high silver platform heels. Her hair was left loose and flowing.
“There was a discussion about whether I should or shouldn’t” wear it, she told People magazine, using an off-color phrase to explain she ultimately decided to throw caution to the wind.
“I felt good.”
Very demure
The “very demure, very mindful” trend may be owning TikTok this summer, but it is also apparent on the red carpet.
Rising young star and fashion It Girl Sydney Sweeney, who stars in Ron Howard’s latest film “Eden,” wore a cream-colored dress with matching capelet, adorned with dainty fabric flowers and a slim bow at the waist.
British actress Florence Pugh, who stars opposite Andrew Garfield in tear-jerker romance “We Live in Time,” arrived at her premiere in a van to accommodate her voluminous strapless pink ball gown.
The dress, also by Ralph, had a deep neckline, but a black rose and bow were pinned in the middle. Pugh looked very old Hollywood — and very chic.
Blanchett and her spoons
Earlier this year, Cate Blanchett stunned fashionistas when she wore a top from Swedish brand Hodakova adorned with dozens of antique spoons.
In Toronto, she gave those utensils another spin.
This time, for a screening of her new Apple TV+ series “Disclaimer,” the two-time Oscar winner wore a fitted black trouser suit, the jacket’s hem embellished with silver spoons, and pointy stilettos.
Swedish designer Ellen Hodakova Larsson has made a name for herself crafting unique clothing from everyday objects — from cutlery to ballpoint pens.
Soft femininity
Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o lends her voice to Roz, the title character in the new DreamWorks Animation film “The Wild Robot,” but her dress for the world premiere was anything but robotic.
The Mexican-Kenyan actress wore a delicate, diaphanous sleeveless lime green Del Core gown with cutouts in the bodice.
Cuba’s Ana de Armas, who stars alongside Sweeney in “Eden,” also went for the light touch, wearing a pale pink Louis Vuitton ballerina-inspired gown with a sparkly high-low hemline skirt baring her legs.
– Back in black –
Fresh off the Venice success of “Maria,” in which she plays legendary opera singer Maria Callas, Angelina Jolie came to Toronto to promote her latest effort behind the camera, “Without Blood” — and looked stunning in basic black.
Jolie — who attended the event with son Pax — wore a Dolce and Gabbana gown with matching long gloves, looking every bit the A-lister she is.
And she was not the only one who made the classic sartorial choice to wear black.
Actress and singer Selena Gomez — in town to promote “Emilia Perez,” for which she is earning some Oscars buzz — looked radiant in a sequinned Rodarte gown with a playful flower at the neckline.
And Demi Moore cut a chic silhouette at the screening of her body horror film “The Substance” in a white dress shirt, black tie and high-waisted black skirt.