Series to Watch: Toronto 2025

Series to Watch: Toronto 2025


By DQ
September 3, 2025

Ones to Watch

Ahead of the 50th Toronto International Film Festival, which begins on September 4, DQ picks out the scripted series that will have red-carpet premieres in the Canadian city.

Black Rabbit
From: US
Original broadcaster: Netflix
Directors: Jason Bateman, Laura Linney, Ben Semanoff and Justin Kurzel
Producers: Aggregate Films, Riff Raff Entertainment, Youngblood Pictures and Range
Starring: Jude Law, Jason Bateman, Cleopatra Coleman, Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, Amaka Okafor and Troy Kotsur
World premiere date: September 7
Launch date: September 18
Law and Bateman play brothers and co-founders of a trendy New York restaurant, each hustling in their own way to keep their business – and each other – afloat amid a rising tide of chaos.
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Gandhi
From: India
Director: Hansal Mehta
Producer: Applause Entertainment
Distributor: Lenore Entertainment Group
Starring: Pratik Gandi, Bhamini Oza Gandhi, Tom Felton, Kabir Bedi, Aseem Hattangady, Ninad Kamat, Jonno Davies, James Murray and Aditya Rawal
World premiere date: September 6
A “sweeping, cinematic” series depicting the formative years and legal career of civil rights icon and Indian independence champion Mohandas ‘Mahatma’ Ghandi (Gandi).

Heajastallan – Bryllupsfesten (A Sámi Wedding)
From: Norway
Original broadcaster: NRK
Directors: Åse Kathrin Vuolab and Pål Jackman
Producers: Tordenfilm, Mer Film and Forest People
Distributor: Reinvent International Sales
Starring: Sara Margrethe Oskal, Ánte Siri, Inga Marja Utsi, Ivan Aleksander Sara Buljo and Craig Stein
World premiere date: September 6
Launch date: 2026
What happens when you mix reindeer herders, family secrets and a 3,000-person wedding planned in a month?

Portobello
From: Italy, France
Original broadcasters: HBO Max, Arte
Director: Marco Bellocchio
Producers: Our Films, Kavac Film and The Apartment Pictures
Distributor: HBO Max
International premiere date: September 8
Launch date: 2026
The stranger-than-fiction true story of beloved Italian TV hist Enzo Tortora, who was falsely accused of involvement with a Neopolitan crime syndicate in the 1980s.

Reunion
From: UK
Original broadcaster: BBC
Director: Luke Snellin
Producer: Warp Films
Distributor: BBC Studios
Starring: Matthew Gurney, Lara Peake, Anne-Marie Duff, Eddie Marsan and Rose Ayling-Ellis
North American premiere date: September 5
A deaf man, recently released from prison, struggles to reconnect with his family and community, while at the same time pursuing justice.
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Read more here

Rise of the Raven
From: Hungary, Austria, Germany
Original broadcasters: TV2 (Hungary), ORF (Austria)
Director: Robert Dornhelm
Producers: Serendipity Point Films, Twin Media, HG Media, MR Film and Beta Film
Distributor: Beta Film
Starring: Gellért Kádár, Vivien Rujder, Franciska Töröcsik, Mariann Hermányi, Ernõ Fekete, Murathan Muslu, Giancarlo Giannini, Rade Serbedzija, Laurence Rupp, Balázs Medveczky, Elena Rusconi, László Mátray, Balázs Csémy, Francesco Acquaroli, Thomas Trabacchi, Cornelius Obonya and Ulaşcan Kutlu\
North American premiere date: September 7
Based on a true story, Rise of the Raven centres on fearless commander János Hunyadi as he leads a small army to an unlikely victory against the dominant Ottoman Empire in 15th century Europe.
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Read more here

The Lowdown
From: US
Original broadcasters: FX (US), Disney+
Director: Sterlin Harjo
Producer: FX
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Keith David, Kaniehtiio Horn, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Kyle MacLachlan, Scott Shepherd, Siena East, Michael Hitchcock, Michael ‘Killer Mike’ Render, Cody Lightning, Tim Blake Nelson and Tracy Letts
World premiere date: September 5
Launch date: September 23 (FX)
A modern noir set in Tulsa, this series follows the gritty exploits of citizen journalist Lee Raybon (Hawke), a self-proclaimed ‘truthstorian’ whose obsession with the truth is always getting him into trouble.
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The Savage
From: Iran
Original broadcaster: Filmnet
Director: Houman Seyyedi
Producer: FilmNet
Distributor: Netfilma
Starring: Negar Javaherian and Javad Ezati
International premiere date: September 6
A devastating tragedy puts a labourer on a collision course with the authorities.
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Wayward
From: Canada
Original broadcaster: Netflix
Directors: Euros Lyn, Renuka Jeyapalan and John Fawcett
Producers: Sphere Media and Objective Fiction
Starring: Mae Martin, Toni Collette, Sarah Gadon, Sydney Topliffe, Alyvia Alyn Lind and Brandon Jay McLaren
World premiere date: September 9
Launch date: September 25
After an escape attempt from an academy for ‘troubled teens,’ two students join forces with a newly local police officer, unearthing the town’s dark and deeply rooted secrets.
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