Toronto Film Festival adds Black Rabbit, The Lowdown, and Wayward to primetime program

Some of the most-anticipated television shows will be a part of this year’s Toronto Film Festival, set to commence on September 4, 2025.

The titles include Netflix’s Black Rabbit and Wayward, alongside the Hulu release, The Lowdown. The first one is a mystery thriller, while the next two lean more into the dramatic zone. They all will be included in the festival's Primetime program, offering the talented voices from television to showcase their work in serialized storytelling at the festival.

The program was launched 10 years ago with the same motive. Its latest chapter will include these three English-language, American shows, apart from a few titles from across the globe.

Here's a list of the rest of the titles, as we know so far:

• The Savage - created by Houman Seyyedi
• Portobello – co-written and directed by Marco Bellocchio
• Origin: The Story of the Basketball Africa League - created by Richard Brown and Tebogo Malope
• Reunion, created by William Mager
• Gandhi - created by Hansal Mehta
• Rise of the Raven - created by Balazs Lengyel
• A Sami Wedding - by Pal Jackman and Ase Kathrin Vuolab

Black Rabbit, The Lowdown, and Wayward to be screened at the 2025 Toronto Film Festival

Netflix's Black Rabbit brings Jason Bateman and Jude Law together in a dysfunctional family drama about two brothers who seem diametrically opposite. Bateman's character is like a family failure as opposed to Law's character, who seems far more organized.

The show will track their clash after a seemingly unexpected reunion set in the mean streets of Manhattan. Zach Baylin and Kate Susman are showrunners and executive producers on this project, set to premiere on September 18 on Netflix, four days after the Toronto Film Festival concludes.

Mae Martin, known for their stand-up comedic work and the drama series Feel Good, handles a mystery thriller. Titled Wayward, the show revolves around a brooding investigation into an academy for “troubled teens.” When describing the show, Martin told Netflix,

“We were saying it’s like if you took the kids from Booksmart and put them in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.”

She further added,

"Wayward has a ton of metaphors for the systems that we all participate in as adults, and how much of our empathy and critical thinking we have to suppress in order to just live in the world. I think that all the characters are grappling with that in this show.”

Martin also leads the cast, which includes Toni Collette and Sarah Gadon, among others. It will debut on Netflix on September 25, after its Toronto Film Festival premiere.

The next project in the list, Wayward, comes from writer-director Sterlin Harjo, the creative voice behind the breakout FX comedy-drama series, Reservation Dogs. Harjo's latest show is also set in Oklahoma.

Harjo reunites with Ethan Hawke, who had a memorable cameo appearance in his Emmy-nominated series. This time, Hawke headlines the show as a journalist stuck in his ways. His undying pursuit of truth leads him to some remarkable exploits, but also some troubles.

However, the official plot synopsis reveals that this truth-seeker is "no idealist," which offers a hint of the moral greys in the story.

Apart from Hawke, the cast includes Kaniehtiio Horn, who was also in Harjo's earlier project. Keith David, Kyle MacLachlan, Tim Blake Nelson, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, and Jeanne Tripplehorn round out the central cast. It is scheduled to be released on Hulu on September 23, after being screened at the Toronto Film Festival.

The 2025 Toronto Film Festival will take place from 4 September to 14 September.

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