The world premiere of a new documentary about the rise of Lil Nas X was delayed over the weekend due to a threat, outlets are reporting. At the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, the screening of Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero at the Roy Thomson Hall was scheduled for 10 p.m.
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But as CNN reports, a threat from a “passerby” caused Toronto Police and private security to conduct a sweep of the scene which delayed the film. The scene was cleared within 20 minutes, a police official told CNN, and the threat was “general” and not targeted at any one person in particular.
[RELATED: Lil Nas X Documentary to Premiere Next Month]
“Our standard security measures remained in place during this time and the screening commenced with a slight delay,” TIFF spokesperson Alejandra Sosa told the outlet in a statement on September 10. “To our knowledge, this was a general threat and not directed at the film or the artist.”
Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero was directed by Carlos López Estrada and Zac Manuel. The former made his feature-film debut in 2018 with Blindspotting and has also directed music videos for Billie Eilish and Katy Perry. Manuel has worked as a cinematographer on documentaries like I Am Vanessa Guillen.
The new film about Lil Nas X traces his unexpectedly fast rise after dropping the culture-shifting single “Old Town Road” at the end of 2018 and how he magnified his own success with follow-ups like “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” in the subsequent years.
In the film, there’s a scene where Lil Nas X’s brother, Tramon Hill, discusses the positive impact the artist has had on his life. “My brother really opened doors for a lot of people,” Tramon says, as reported by Entertainment Weekly. “Yeah, he opened a door for me. What I mean by that, like, I’m not gay, though, you feel me? I’m bisexual. He helped me be real with myself. My brother made me more open to it.”
At the screening, Lil Nas X answered questions from fans, including one about what kind of music he’s currently working on. Per Consequence, he mentioned developing “some folk music,” then went on to mention “Brazilian funk.” Sounds cool!
Photo by Leon Bennett/WireImage
