Canadian Entertainment News
News and features from across Canadian entertainment, arts and culture
From Mosquers award winner to feature director: Ilhan Abdullahi brings Lifeline to Edmonton
Two years after taking home audience and performance honours at Edmonton’s Mosquers Film Festival, Somali-Canadian filmmaker Ilhan Abdullahi returned to the festival with her feature directorial debut.
Brian Webb steps back as Molly McDermott takes over Edmonton dance company
Brian Webb is stepping back as artistic director of the Edmonton dance company he founded in 1979, with Molly McDermott taking over the role as the Brian Webb Dance Company enters its 48th season.
P.E.I.’s The Snake makes Canadian premiere at Atlantic International Film Festival
Prince Edward Island filmmaker Jenna MacMillan’s feature directorial debut, The Snake, is making its Canadian premiere as the Atlantic Gala at the Atlantic International Film Festival in Halifax.
B.C.-raised Emily St. John Mandel returns with Exit Party as novel heads to television
Emily St. John Mandel’s seventh novel will be published in Canada Tuesday, bringing the B.C.-raised author back to some of the ideas that have run through her work for years: fractured societies, alternate paths, surveillance and the uneasy relationship between safety and freedom.
Deepa Mehta among TIFF jurors as festival sets 2026 awards
The Toronto International Film Festival has finalized its competitive awards and jury lineups ahead of the festival’s Sept. 10 opening, with Canadian filmmakers Deepa Mehta, Hubert Davis, Zarrar Kahn and Sophy Romvari among those who will help select this year’s winners.
Darrin Hagen brings Edmonton queer theatre history to the page in The Crown Collection
Thirty years after The Edmonton Queen first reached the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival, Darrin Hagen’s writing debut is returning in another form.
Toronto writer Terese Mason Pierre brings Canadian BIPOC voices to Worldcon
Toronto writer, poet and editor Terese Mason Pierre has been given one of Worldcon’s featured platforms this week, and she has already said what she wants to do with it.
From Pennywise in Vancouver to Christmas at West Edmonton Mall, Tim Curry left a long Canadian trail
Tim Curry was eating lunch in Vancouver’s Stanley Park on June 27, 1990, still in full Pennywise makeup, when journalist Steve Newton sat down to interview him. Curry was in Vancouver filming the television adaptation of Stephen King’s It, and when Newton asked how he approached Pennywise, Curry offered a description that has held up remarkably well: “I think of him all the time as a smile gone bad.”
Amanda Leduc brings disability advocacy and literary mentorship to Calgary residency
Canadian author Amanda Leduc will spend the next 10 months writing, meeting with readers and helping other writers develop their work as the University of Calgary’s 2026–27 Canadian Writer-in-Residence.
Sophie Nélisse named new Birks brand ambassador
Canadian actor Sophie Nélisse has been named the newest brand ambassador for Birks, joining the Canadian jewellery company as she moves through a busy stretch of television work.
Montreal-born Optimus Prime voice actor Peter Cullen dies at 85
Peter Cullen, the Montreal-born actor whose voice became inseparable from Optimus Prime over more than four decades, has died at 85.
Eric McCormack brings personal connection to national prostate cancer campaign
Eric McCormack is asking Canadians to spend the final days of August getting out for a ride — however they choose to do it.
Michael J. Fox returns to acting in a year of major honours
Michael J. Fox stepped back in front of a television camera this year after retiring from acting in 2020.
Katheryn Winnick returns to Kyiv as Ukraine honours her years of support
Canadian actor Katheryn Winnick was awakened by air-raid sirens during her latest visit to Kyiv, sending her into a shelter during an overnight Russian attack.
Ed Fest will bring Cranbrook Ed downtown on 100th anniversary of his naming
The free Sept. 18–19 arts and music festival includes a downtown parade with a 16-foot elephant puppet on the centennial date of Charlie Ed’s renaming.
Quebec audiovisual technicians ratify first AQTIS agreement with Netflix
Quebec audiovisual technicians represented by AQTIS 514 IATSE have ratified the union’s first term agreement with Netflix, creating a four-year framework for productions the streaming company shoots in the province.
Vancouver-born Seth Rogen to receive TIFF’s Norman Jewison career achievement award
Vancouver-born actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen will receive one of the Toronto International Film Festival’s major Canadian career honours next month, during a festival where he will also appear in two films and take part in a separate industry event.
Canadian performers bring spoken word, AI comedy to Edmonton Fringe finale
The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival heads into its final weekend with more than 200 productions on its 2026 program, including Canadian shows built around spoken-word poetry, artificial intelligence and a long-running theatrical version of God in a floral suit.
FAN EXPO Canada returns to Toronto with Hobbits, Cena and 135,000 fans
FAN EXPO Canada is preparing to bring an estimated 135,000 fans to downtown Toronto for four days of comics, cosplay, gaming, anime, science fiction and other pop culture.
Banff string quartet festival brings dance, accordion and orchestral sound into chamber music
The Banff International String Quartet Festival is expanding the traditional four-player chamber ensemble this September, pairing string music with dance, accordion, larger ensembles and orchestral arrangements.