Cory Monteith movie 'All the Wrong Reasons' to premiere at Toronto

Cory Monteith movie ‘All the Wrong Reasons’ to premiere at Toronto

By Steven Zeitchik and Amy Kaufman

Aug. 7, 2013 12:31 PM PT

One of Cory Monteith’s unseen final films will receive its moment in the sun at the Toronto International Film Festival next month.

Organizers announced Wednesday that “All the Wrong Reasons,” a Canadian drama Monteith shot last year during breaks from “Glee,” will have its world premiere at the festival.

Gia Milani’s debut feature follows a group of four people with connections to a department store who are each struggling with their own demons. Monteith plays a manager trying to help his wife (Karine Vanasse) cope with post-traumatic stress disorder after she suffers a loss.

WATCH: Trailers from Toronto

“My film would not have been made without him,” Milani wrote of Monteith in an e-mail shortly after the actor’s death July 13. “I am so grateful to Cory that he took it on. I was surprised he did. It is a film that has a dark subject matter, and his character is far from the loveable Finn Hudson,” she said, referring to Monteith’s upbeat character on “Glee.” She added: “I was impressed with Cory’s ability to embody my flawed character, and I am fiercely proud of Cory’s performance.”

The Canadian actor was working on “Glee” and “Reasons” simultaneously last summer, spending weekends in Los Angeles and returning Monday mornings to Milani’s set in Nova Scotia. “He never missed a beat. I am sure he was tired, but didn’t show it,” Milani wrote in the email. The filmmaker said that after completing the movie in June, she had screened it for Monteith in L.A.

Milani added in a statement Wednesday that “While we are still reeling from the loss of Cory far too soon, we are very happy that we can present this film to the world at the Toronto Festival and show audiences what an incredible dramatic performance he delivers in it. The film offers a glimpse of him I don’t think people have had a chance to see before.”

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The movie, which does not yet have a U.S. distributor, was part of a group of Canadian premieres organizers announced Wednesday. Among the other titles are the Daniel Radcliffe romantic dramedy “The F Word,” directed by Michael Dowse; veteran director Bruce McDonald’s “The Husband”; and “Enemy,” Denis Villeneuve’s second film with Jake Gyllenhaal at Toronto (after “Prisoners”).

Monteith, who battled with addiction, was found dead in a Vancouver hotel last month at age 31. He also completed another film, “McCanick,” in which he plays a street hustler also coping with addiction issues.

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Steven Zeitchik

Steven Zeitchik is a former Los Angeles Times staff writer who covered film and the larger world of Hollywood for the paper from 2009 to 2017, exploring the personalities, issues, content and consequences of both the creative and business (and, increasingly, digital) aspects of our screen entertainment. He previously covered entertainment beats at Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, has contributed arts and culture pieces to the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and the New York Times and has done journalistic tours of duty in Jerusalem and Berlin. While at The Times he has also reported stories in cities ranging from Cairo to Krakow, though Hollywood can still seem like the most exotic destination of all.

Amy Kaufman

Amy Kaufman is a columnist at the Los Angeles Times, where she writes the A-1 column “For Real With Amy Kaufman.” The series examines the lives of icons, underdogs and rising stars to find out who the people are shaping our culture — for real. Since joining The Times in 2009, she has profiled hundreds of influential figures including Stevie Nicks, Nick Cannon, Drew Barrymore and Lady Gaga. She is also an investigative reporter and was part of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize finalist team that covered the tragic shooting on the “Rust” film set. Her work often shines a light on the darker side of the entertainment business, and she has uncovered misconduct allegations against Randall Emmett and Russell Simmons. In 2018, her book “Bachelor Nation: Inside the World of America’s Favorite Guilty Pleasure” became a New York Times bestseller.

Cory Monteith movie ‘All the Wrong Reasons’ to premiere at Toronto

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