World’s leading showcase of new horror movies cancelled for this year in Toronto

The leading showcase in the world of new horror and science fiction movies attended by thousands each year has been cancelled for 2024 and postponed to 2025.

Toronto After Dark is a film festival for new horror, thriller and sci-fi movies that’s typically attended by over 5,000 people.

This year, those thousands will sadly be disappointed as the festival’s 18th edition has been postponed for a year. Even sadder, the postponement is due to the festival director and founder’s illness.

Adam Lopez founded the Toronto After Dark festival in 2006 at Bloor Cinema. He put out an announcement and special statement regarding the five days of films being pushed to next year.

“I am grateful to everyone who has supported me throughout my battle with Stage IV Head & Neck cancer over the past three years. Your encouragement has been a source of strength for me and my loved ones as I defied the odds and surpassed my initial one-year prognosis,” reads the statement.

“Despite the challenges posed by my health, I was fortunate enough to be able to work with my team to organize the last two editions of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival. It was a pleasure to return to the stage and introduce our talented filmmakers to our enthusiastic audiences in both 2022 and 2023. I had hoped to continue this tradition with a third event this year, but unfortunately, my health has taken a turn for the worse in 2024. As a result, I have had to make the difficult decision to postpone this year’s festival.”

He continues the statement by saying that he’ll be passing the torch to keep the festival going. The new Festival Legacy Director for Toronto After Dark will be Peter Lupowsky. He’ll be assisted by long-running festival staff, some of whom have been with the fest for over a decade.

Lopez also hopes to stay involved and possibly even grace the red carpet. You can also support him on his journey fighting cancer on social media.

The postponement of the event means a call for submissions from filmmakers will be starting up in the New Year.

Toronto After Dark has been postponed to Oct. 15 to 19, 2025 at the Scotiabank Theatre.