Bomb threat delays Lil Nas X documentary premiere at TIFF
Published:Monday | September 11, 2023 | 12:05 AM
TORONTO (AP)
The premiere of the documentary Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero was delayed after a bomb threat was called in at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
The Saturday night premiere of the film at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall was delayed by about 20 minutes while authorities verified that the threat wasn’t credible. Lil Nas X was kept off the red carpet during that time.
Judy Lung, vice-president of public affairs and communications for TIFF, said in a statement that Toronto police investigated the vicinity of the red carpet ahead of the screening.
“Our standard security measures remained in place during this time and the screening commenced with a slight delay,” Lung said. “To our knowledge, this was a general threat and not directed at the film or the artist.”
Long Live Montero, directed by Carlos López Estrada and Zac Manuel, documents the pop superstar’s eight-month tour beginning in September 2022 for his full-length debut album, Montero.
The 24-year-old star, who has enjoyed a meteoric rise over recent years, insists that he has been unaffected by fame and success. He told ET Canada: “I have a normal life. Yeah, I go to Whole Foods.”
He rose to prominence with the release of his country rap single, Old Town Road, which spent 19 weeks atop the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the longest-running number-one song since the chart debuted in 1958. He released his debut studio album, Montero, back in 2021.
However, the chart-topping star has insisted that he won’t rest on his laurels and he is keen to keep working hard.
Nas previously revealed that he realised he was “hot” after achieving fame and success.
He told Allure magazine: “I think I realised I was hot right along ... No, no, no, no, no. Actually, probably at the very beginning of my fame. And I’ve always thought I was an attractive person - well, at least when I started to grow my facial hair, and stuff - but really around that time when other people would say it to me.”
Nas also revealed that his relationship with his appearance has changed since he became famous.
“I feel like I am at the absolute peak of my self-love right now in terms of loving how I am, accepting how I look, and also just seeing the beauty in myself.”