Director Antoine Fuqua’s remake of the 1960s Western The Magnificent Seven is expected to kick off the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, which will include movies about whistleblower Edward Snowden and former US President Lyndon B. Johnson among the usual Oscar hopefuls.

The 10-day festival, now in its 41st year, has become a launching pad for Hollywood’s award season, with films such as 12 Years a Slave, The King’s Speech and Slumdog Millionaire all gaining critical momentum in Toronto before going on to win the Academy Awards for best picture.

Organisers said in a statement that the festival was expected to start with the world premiere of The Magnificent Seven. The film stars Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Byung-Hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Martin Sensmeier, Haley Bennett and Peter Sarsgaard.

Fuqua’s remake of the 1960 original tells the story of the town of Rose Creek under the deadly control of industrialist Bartholomew Bogue, played by Sarsgaard, and the mercenaries hired to protect the townspeople.

Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Steve McQueen, Yul Brynner, Robert Vaughn, Horst Buchholz and Brad Dexter in The Magnificent Seven (1960).Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Steve McQueen, Yul Brynner, Robert Vaughn, Horst Buchholz and Brad Dexter in The Magnificent Seven (1960).

The festival will close with the world premiere of Kelly Fremon Craig’s The Edge of Seventeen, which tells the tale of an awkward high school student, played by Hailee Steinfeld, who gains the unexpected friendship of a thoughtful boy played by Hayden Szeto. The film also stars Woody Harrelson.

Biographical films feature prominently in the festival’s high-profile gala and special presentation programmes.

Oliver Stone, known for the gangster movie Scarface and the financial drama Wall Street, directs Snowden, which features Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the personal story of the titular polarising figure who exposed US illegal surveillance.

Rob Reiner, known for the romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally and the courtroom drama A Few Good Men, directed LBJ, in which Harrelson portrays former US president Lyndon B. Johnson.

The festival runs through September 18.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.