Entertainment

TIFF films The Guilty, The Power of the Dog leak on pirate websites

Two of Netflix's most-prized 2021 festival movies have leaked online after debuting as part of the at-home digital offerings of the Toronto International Film Festival.

Films premiered at Toronto International Film Festival just days prior to leak

This image released by Netflix shows Jake Gyllenhaal in a scene from Netflix's The Guilty. Both this film and the Benedict Cumberbatch-led The Power of the Dog have leaked to pirate websites. (Netflix/The Associated Press)

Two of Netflix's most-prized 2021 festival movies have leaked online after debuting as part of the at-home digital offerings of the Toronto International Film Festival.

Jane Campion's drama The Power of the Dog, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and the Antoine Fuqua thriller The Guilty, led by Jake Gyllenhaal, both appeared on pirate websites as of early Monday.

It was not immediately clear if TIFF showings were the source of the pirated copies, however both movies screened over the weekend as part of TIFF's hybrid festival model with screenings in theatres and on-demand in homes across the country.

Representatives for Netflix and TIFF did not immediately respond for comment.

Kodi Smit-McPhee, left, and Benedict Cumberbatch pose at the premiere of The Power of the Dog at the Toronto International Film Festival, Sept. 10, 2021. The film is not scheduled to premiere to the public until December. (Mark Blinch/Reuters)

The leaks are a worst nightmare scenario for Netflix which opted to sit out last year's TIFF hybrid festival.

Many in the Hollywood film community have worried that piracy at festival screenings could destroy a film's hopes at the box office and derail some of the buzz that builds ahead of awards season.

The Guilty is set to debut Oct. 1 on Netflix after a limited theatrical release while The Power of the Dog isn't due until December.