TIFF 2014: Tom McCarthy, Arnold Schwarzenegger to debut new films

TIFF 2014: Tom McCarthy, Arnold Schwarzenegger to debut new films

Tom McCarthy, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kristen Wiig will bring new work to the Toronto Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival will premiere new work from Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kristen Wiig

New movies from Tom McCarthy, Johnnie To and “Love & Basketball” director Gina Prince-Bythewood round out the selection of films world-premiering at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, organizers said Tuesday.

McCarthy’s “The Cobbler” stars Adam Sandler as a longtime shoe repairman who begins seeing the world in a new way when he realizes he can literally step into the shoes of customers; its fantasy conceit is a bit of a new turn for McCarthy, known for dramas such as “Win Win” and “The Visitor.” (The film also marks Sandler's second Toronto entry, after the previously announced parent-child dramedy "Men, Women & Children.")

In “Beyond the Lights,” Prince-Bythewood examines the relationship between a young musician and a young policeman, in a film starring the English actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw in the lead role.

And To, the Hong Kong crime auteur, continues his own recent departure with the sequel “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart 2," with the director of movies such as “Vengeance” and “Blind Detective” returning to the romantic exploits he followed in the 2011 original.

Also, an Arnold Schwarzenegger zombie movie ("Maggie," co-starring Abigail Breslin) and Kristen Wiig's borderline-personality dramedy ("Welcome to Me," co-starring Tim Robbins) will world-premiere at the fest.

Toronto, a preeminent showcase for fall releases and a bellwether for the award season that follows, previously announced it would world-premiere new films from Jason Reitman, Noah Baumbach and Shawn Levy among its more than 300-film selections.

Organizers said Tuesday that the lineup will also include world premieres of Philip Martin’s “The Forger,” a family-themed art-heist movie starring John Travolta and Christopher Walken, and the Dustin Hoffman-starring “Boychoir,” Francois Girard’s look at the relationship between a musical prodigy and his tough-minded teacher that will draw inevitable comparisons to Sundance sensation and Toronto reprise “Whiplash.”

The 11-day Toronto International Film Festival kicks off Sept. 4 with the world premiere of David Dobkin’s “The Judge.