‘Hamnet‘ Wins TIFF 2025 People’s Choice Award,Boostingโ Oscar Prospects
TORONTO – Chloรฉ Zhao’s “Hamnet,” a historical drama exploring โคthe potential influence of Shakespeare’s son’s death on his masterpiece “Hamlet,” โฃtook โhome โฃthe prestigious People’s Choice Award atโข the Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday. The award, often considered a key indicator of โขfuture Oscar success, positions the film as a major contender in the upcoming awards season.
Based onโ the novel by Maggie O’Farrell, and co-written by O’Farrell and โคZhao, “Hamnet”โฃ centers on Shakespeare’s wife, Agnes (also knownโ as Anne),โ and the profound griefโข following the โloss of her 11-year-old son. Zhao previously wonโข the Toronto People’s choice Award in 2020 with “Nomadland,” which went on to win three Academyโฃ Awards in 2021, including Best Director.
Runners-up for the People’s Choice prize included Guillermo delโข Toro’s “Frankenstein” โคand Rian Johnson’sโ “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.”
Other notable TIFF 2025 award recipientsโ include:
* โฃ People’s Choice Documentary Award: “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,” directed by โฃBarry Avrich. The film faced initial controversy afterโฃ its invitation was withdrawn and subsequently reinstated following โคpublic outcry.
* International People’s Choice Award: “No Other Choice,” โdirected by Park Chan-wook.
* Midnight Madness Award: “Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie,” directed by Matt Johnson.
* Platform Award: “To The Victory,” directed by Valentyn Vasyanovych.
* Canadianโ Feature Film: “Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband),” directed by Zacharias Kunuk.
* Canadian Finding: “Blue Heron,” directed by Sophy Romvari.
* International Short film: “Talk Me,” directed by โขJoecar Hanna.
* Canadian โShort Film: “The Girl Who Cried Pearls,” โdirected โby Chris Lavis and maciekโ Szczerbowski.
* Animated Shortโ Film: โ “To the Woods,” directed by Agnรจs patron.
* NETPACโค award: โ “In Search of the Sky,” directed โขby Jitank Singhโค gurjar.
* FIPRESCI Prize: “Forastera,” directed by Lucรญa Aleรฑar Iglesias.
Last โฃyear’s People’s Choiceโฃ winner, Mike Flanagan’s “The Life ofโ Chuck,” is slated for public releaseโฃ in summer 2025, a timeline some believe may diminish its Oscar chances.
