At TIFF in the movie ‘Living,’ Bill Nighy is ‘a fetishist about suits’

Suits me.

One of my more memorable encounters during TIFF: talking haberdashery with Bill Nighy. Certainly, it was the drollest. The British actor does droll for breakfast, lunch and dinner, after all.

Rising to a plateau of stardom with his role as an aging rock star in the modern classic “Love Actually,” but also made indispensable because of his roles in franchises like “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Harry Potter,” Nighy has also long been admired as one sharp daddy tailoring-wise; renowned for his vast collection of two-pieces from iconic London suit-makers like Anderson & Sheppard.

“This a Savile Row number?” I asked him when crossing paths the other night at Marbl, where the Supper Suite brought a phalanx of stars this week. He was, of course, wearing a suit. A natty, dark-coloured one. The man probably brushes his teeth in a suit.

Actually, no. “P Johnson,” he said. “They are in Sydney. Half the price of Savile Row.” Mischievous smile. “They work with an algorithm. Do not ask me to explain what this is … but it is excellent.”

Algorithm? You do not say.

“I am a fetishist about suits,” he added. “I sort of want to wear the same dark suit with a different shirt, perhaps, always. Occasionally — if I am feeling daring — I will break out to grey.”

In his exquisitely understated TIFF movie “Living” — which has Nighy in a wonderful leading role — he wears a suit. I confirmed. “One suit,” he said.

Confession: what I really wanted to ask Nighy, but I kind of chickened out, was this: “Have you brought Anna?”

There has been much speculation in the last few years that he is, indeed, dating the queen of all things Vogue. Wintour! Did you know? Famously, they were spotted at a romantic dinner in Rome in 2021 (Nighy was photographed bearing red roses) and they have been spotted together at other things, like Broadway outings. I kind of love the idea of them together! Very Nick and Nora.

Also

Another TIFF, another Hugo Boss party. A mainstay during the fest, it went on this year at Harriet’s atop 1 Hotel on Wellington late Monday. Gorgeous night. Sparkling skyline. Playful decor courtesy of veteran party architect Jeffry Roick. This year, it was billed as a post-celebration following the world premiere of “Devotion,” an aerial spectacle directed by JD Dillard based on the true story of U.S. Navy fighter pilots during the Korean War. Partygoers? They included both a Jonas brother (Joe that is, with wife Sophie Turner) as well as one with Kennedy blood (Patrick Schwarzenegger, son of Arnold and Maria). The latter, sporting a trucker hat, told me when we chatted that he is in Toronto shooting the series “The Boys” and also, what a treat it was working recently with Colin Firth in “The Staircase.”

Keeping his feet on the ground, but the focus of disproportionate attention: newly minted star Glen Powell, who is part of the “Devotion” ensemble but also recently co-starred in yet another aerial epic, “Top Gun Maverick,” playing the character of Hangman. No big deal. Only the sixth biggest box office-grossing movie of all time. More than a billion … and counting. The movie, incidentally, has generated another particularly 2022 by-product: a lot of thirst for the Texas-born actor on TikTok. It is a whole thing. Powell was here at the Boss party with his gorgeous model girlfriend, Gigi Paris — because, of course, he is dating someone named Gigi Paris.

Scene! Heard!

A celebration for “A Jazzman’s Blues,” directed by Tyler Perry, doubled as a birthday party for the multi-hyphenate impresario. Cue the chocolate mousse cake, complete with sparklers, brought out to fete the guy on the cusp of 53. The do, held at RBC House inside the Storys Building on Duncan, featured a jazz band (naturally) and also something called a Jazzman’s Old-Fashioned, made with Bulleit Bourbon.

“Women Talking.” Women partying. Feeling the love at a party this week at Lapinou on King West, following the premiere of Sarah Polley’s directorial splash, were ladies like Rooney Mara, Jessie Buckley and Claire Foy. It was hosted by Audi Canada. Foy, who won hearts playing the young Queen Elizabeth II in “The Crown,” gave away her feelings on the red carpet that night when speaking to the BBC: “I think that she was an incredible monarch. She united people and she was a massive symbol of continuity and dignity and grace. My main feeling is just thinking about her as a mother and a grandmother and a great-grandmother, really …”

Shinan Govani is a Toronto-based freelance contributing columnist covering culture and society. Follow him on Twitter: @shinangovani

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