Steven Spielberg’s ‘The Fabelmans’ Wins Toronto Film Festival People’s Choice Award - Deadline

Here is Steven Spielberg’s full statement upon winning the Toronto Film Festival’s People’s Choice award for The Fabelmans.

PREVIOUSLY: The People’s Choice Award from the just-wrapped 2022 Toronto Film Festival has gone to Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans.

Voted online by audience members since 1978 and often considered a harbinger for the Best Picture Oscar, the TIFF People’s Choice Award has been won by such eventual Best Picture Academy Award winners as Nomadland, Green Book, 12 Years a Slave, The King’s Speech, Slumdog Millinaire, American Beauty and Chariots of Fire.

With Venice awarding its Golden Lion unusually to a documentary, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed from director Laura Poitras (but did not place in the top 3 at TIFF), and now the People’s Choice Award from TIFF going to The Fabelmans, the race is on and at this point appears wide open and perhaps heading into unpredictable territory.

However, with this award, and the general feeling that Fabelmans emerged coming off its wildly enthusiastic TIFF premiere a week ago as the Oscar front-runner at least for now, it means the film is in a good early position for Universal and Spielberg’s most personal film yet.

Festival director Cameron Bailey notified Spielberg very early this morning and he said was very grateful and again, as he said after the huge standing ovation at its premiere, that he was very glad they brought it to Toronto (which he noted last week was his first festival ever for one of his directed films, but it should also be mentioned that 2018’s Green Book another People’s Choice winner was produced by Spielberg’s company).

IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Film.

Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film.

Special Mention for Best Canadian Feature Film.

For the 45th year, the People’s Choice Awards distinguish the audience’s top title at the festival as voted by the viewing public

TIFF People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award

TIFF People’s Choice Documentary Award

TIFF People’s Choice Award