Trailer Debuts for 'Villeneuve: Rise of a Legend,' Set to Close Toronto Film Festival
The Hollywood Reporter has exclusively debuted the trailer for Villeneuve: Rise of a Legend, a biographical drama charting the life of Formula One driver Gilles Villeneuve. The film is set to world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and close the 2026 edition on 19 September, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Directed by Yan Lanouette Turgeon, the film traces Villeneuve's rise through the racing ranks before his death at the Zolder circuit in Belgium in 1982. Remi Goulet plays the Quebec-born driver, whose aggressive style and brief but electric Ferrari career made him a cult figure in motorsport. The screenplay comes from Daniel Roby and Guillaume Lonergan.
The cast includes Rosalie Bonenfant as Villeneuve's wife and Patrice Robitaille as his father. Christian Larouche produces, with associate producer Tim Ringuette and co-producer Marc Cote. Executive producers are Christian Simoneau, Melanie Villeneuve and Fabrice Barrilliet. International sales are handled by Le Pacte — the French sales agent that shops distribution rights to buyers territory by territory at festivals and markets.
TIFF had already flagged the film as its Closing Night selection when it announced its 2026 Gala and Special Presentations programmes, describing it as a biographical sports drama. The festival's earlier lineup announcements in July and August confirmed the closing slot before the trailer reveal gave audiences their first look at the finished picture.
Gilles Villeneuve drove for Ferrari from 1977 until the crash that killed him during qualifying at the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix. He won six Grands Prix and never claimed a world championship, yet his name endures — the circuit in Montreal has carried it since 1982. For a film industry that has rarely turned to Formula One for biographical drama, the choice of subject carries a built-in audience that crosses both sports and French-language cinema. The film runs 102 minutes and carries the French-language title Villeneuve : l'ascension d'une légende.
Toronto's closing-night slot is a curated position — the festival's final gala, the one that sends audiences out on a particular note. Placing a Canadian racing biopic there gives the film a home-crowd stage before Le Pacte begins selling it in earnest to international distributors.
