Nia DaCosta’s HEDDA GABLER Film to Premiere at TIFF

Nia DaCosta's Hedda, a new film adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's play Hedda Gabler, is among the newly announced movies having their world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival this September. The other titles are Alejandro Amenábar’s The Captive, Steven Soderbergh’s The Christophers, Sung-hyun Byun’s Good News, and Chandler Levack’s Mile End Kicks. The 50th edition of TIFF, presented by Rogers, will take place September 4–14, 2025.

The upcoming reworking of the 1891 stage play stars Tessa Thompson as the titular character, with a cast that also includes Imogen Poots, Tom Bateman, Nina Hoss, Nicholas Pinnock, Finbar Lynch, Mirren Mack, Hamilton's Jamael Westman, Saffron Hocking, and Kathryn Hunter. This marks DaCosta's fourth feature as director, following Little Woods, Candyman, and The Marvels.

In the play, Hedda Gabler, the daughter of a general, arrives home from her honeymoon already bored and filled with contempt for her husband and the respectable life he represents. When the reappearance of an old flame threatens both her husband’s career prospects and her stability, Hedda contrives to manipulate everyone in her orbit, becoming the architect of her own destruction. 

Over the years, the role has been personified by some of the most distinguished actresses of all time, including Annette Bening, Ingrid Bergman, Cate Blanchett, Judy Davis, Eleanora Duse, Jane Fonda, Isabelle Huppert, and Mary-Louise Parker, among others.

Photo courtesy of TIFF