Toronto: Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao’s highly anticipated film, “Hamnet,” has won the top prize, the People’s Choice Award, at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). With this victory, the film has established itself as a strong contender for the Academy Awards.
According to a report from the renowned entertainment magazine Variety, “Hamnet” received overwhelming acclaim from audiences at the festival. This award is not decided by a jury but is given based on votes from the general audience members who watch the films. Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s bestselling novel, the film tells the story of the death of William Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, and its profound impact on his family. The film stars Jessie Buckley as Shakespeare’s wife, Agnes, and Paul Mescal as William Shakespeare.
This is the second film from director Chloé Zhao to win this coveted award. Her previous film, “Nomadland,” also won the People’s Choice Award in 2020 and subsequently went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture.
The TIFF People’s Choice Award is considered a reliable bellwether for the Oscars. In recent years, winners of this award, such as “Green Book,” “12 Years a Slave,” and “The King’s Speech,” have all gone on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. This year, the first runner-up was Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” while the second runner-up was Rian Johnson’s “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.”
This win for “Hamnet” has positioned it as one of the most talked-about films of the upcoming awards season.
